


A Political Affair

by starlight_and_seafire



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Damerey Week, Developing Relationship, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, POV Poe Dameron, POV Rey (Star Wars), Political AU, Politics, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-19
Updated: 2019-03-10
Packaged: 2019-08-04 14:15:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 41,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16348277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starlight_and_seafire/pseuds/starlight_and_seafire
Summary: As one of Senator Leia Organa’s key staff members, Rey Kenobi has to attend a large gala in support of a national organization that helps raise money for homeless veterans.She didn’t have a lot of hope for enjoying the event, not when she was forced to wear a too-fancy dress and a pair of heels. It was work, and while she liked her job and loved the thought that she was making a difference, she never really expected to have a good time there, much less meet anyone that takes her breath away.Clearly, she was wrong.And she never could have guessed where it would lead her.Chapter 1 originally created for Damerey Week - Day 5: AU Modern. Now expanded!--Note: Chapter 6 "A Holiday Interlude" is rated E for sex, but can easily be skipped. The rest of the work is rated T.





	1. Chapter 1

“I don’t understand why I have to come to this,” Rey says, tugging the fabric of the dress away from her waist a bit, shimmying around as if it would make the formfitting clothing more comfortable. Sadly, there was nothing she could do about the shoes pinching at her toes. She’s just happy that the pair she borrowed had relatively short heels.

Leia takes a step closer to her and draws Rey’s hands away from the fabric before smoothing it down once more. “Stop fussing with it. I know you’re not used to it, but sometimes occasions call for a bit of dressing up. Besides,” she says, stepping away and walking towards the door, “you look lovely. Try to enjoy the night, okay?”

“I’ll try” Rey says with a sigh, but nonetheless her back straightens a bit in pride, still so unused to any sort of compliment. She grew up wearing rags, then practically wore a uniform of jeans and t-shirts in university. Then she transitioned to conservative work clothes when Senator Organa hired her to work as an intern in her office, before being promoted quickly through the ranks to become her advisor on women’s and children’s issues, with a particular focus on poverty and education.

However, this was her first time wearing something so fancy. She’s still not sure how she feels about the clothing.

“Anyway, there’s going to be a lot of interesting people to meet and talk to tonight. I’m going to introduce you to a few people that might be helpful for your work. Stick with me at first, okay?”

A few of the Senator’s other staffers had already entered the large event center, but Rey waited and followed the Senator into the room. Upon stepping into the space, her breath was taken away by the sheer splendor of it all, and her eyes widened as she took everything in. She couldn’t even begin to count the number of people filling the space, all of them elegantly dressed in tuxes and ball gowns. A space for dancing sat squarely in the middle of the room, and a small band had set up near the front. To one side sat a large buffet of food, and she eyed it hungrily even as the Senator led her towards an area where tables and chairs were set up and people mingled, chatting with each other over their glasses of champagne and wine.

 As the Senator passed by a small group, the people reached out for a handshake, which the Senator warmly returned, often exchanging a handful of words with each individual. Rey admired the Senator’s ability to recall so many details about a person, and to treat each of them as a friend. Though considering how involved both the Senator and her husband had been with the military when they were younger, it’s no surprise that the Senator would be well recognized at an event raising money for one of the largest charities fighting homelessness among veterans, and that the supporters of such a cause would be recognized by the Senator. The Senator had made it one of her key issues after all. She’s helped pass more bills aimed at supporting veterans than any other politician Rey could think of.

The Senator makes her way to the edge of the crowd, where a woman, dressed in a flowing yellow gown, stands. “Jessika Pava, it’s so good to see you again,” the Senator says, reaching out to wrap the woman up in a hug.

The woman smiles and returns the embrace. “I hear my full name so rarely, I almost forget what it is sometimes. It’s good to see you, too, Senator.”

“Rey, you probably recognize the name, but Jess worked in our office before you came on board. Poe stole her from right out under my nose, and now I’m getting concerned that he’s thinking of stealing Snap, too.”

Jess laughs and shakes her head. “Now, that’s not fair, Senator. I believe you told me, and I quote, ‘Jess, you’d be an idiot if you don’t take the job, and I don’t hire idiots’ and then promptly started offering me tips for the new job.” The Senator laughs, and Jess turns back towards Rey, sticking her hand out towards her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’d love to talk to you more later, catch up on all the gossip from the office, but I know Poe is eager to catch up with the Senator.”

“Yes, likewise. I’m surprised I haven’t seen him yet,” the Senator says, briefly glancing around the room.

“He got sidelined by one of the big donors early on, but -” she pauses to wave at someone somewhere behind them, “there he is now.”

The Senator turns, her smile wider than any Rey’s ever seen on her before. Rey turns a moment later, just as the man in question approaches, and the Senator steps forward, arms outstretched to embrace the man. Rey only has a moment to look at the man, but even with that brief look, she feels like the air’s been knocked out of her. He’s clearly handsome – probably the most handsome man she’s ever seen. When he pulls back from the hug to say something to the Senator, she gets an even closer look at his face, with its warm brown eyes and bright smile.

She’s distracted, so she’s caught off guard as the Senator introduces them and that bright smile turns her way. She can only hope that she doesn’t say anything embarrassing as she shakes his hand, because she’s still too distracted by him to really think about what she’s saying.

She watches him look back and forth between her and the Senator for a moment, but it isn’t until her ears catch the Senator mentioning Rey’s alma mater that she’s able to focus once again on the conversation.

“My brother has always had a talent for figuring out who the best and brightest in his classes were, and thankfully he sent her in my direction. She’s been a real asset to the office. Smart, passionate, extremely hardworking. I don’t know what I’d do without her,” the Senator says, reaching over to squeeze Rey’s shoulder.

Rey ducks her head down for a brief moment, as she feels her cheeks warm with a blush at yet another compliment.

Poe’s voice causes her to look back up, and she’s rewarded when he sends another warm smile in her direction. “That’s high praise coming from the Senator,” he says, before he’s interrupted by the Senator.

“It’s Leia.”

“Excuse me, that’s high praise coming from Senator Leia,” he says, grinning at her as she huffs and rolls her eyes at him. He leans towards Rey and says in a conspiratorial whisper, “Our families have known each other since I was a kid. There’s no way I can call her Leia. Just don’t ever let her hear you call her ma’am.”

Rey leans back towards him. “I learned that lesson pretty quickly,” she says in a stage whisper.

The Senator sighs, an exaggerated sound, as she looks back and forth between them. “I’m already regretting introducing you two. I’m going to have to keep my eye on the both of you, aren’t I? Anyway, Poe, I wanted to introduce you to Rey, as she’s been handling my portfolio on poverty issues. And I believe you two have quite a lot in common otherwise, so I’ll let you two talk,” and she briefly pauses as she glances over Poe’s shoulder and waves at someone in the distance. “I think I see Tom McDaniels, and clearly he hasn’t given enough money to your organization yet, Poe. Don’t worry, I’m gonna go over there and catch up with him a bit, and make sure he really gives his wallet a workout,” she says as she walks off with a wink thrown in Poe’s direction.

Poe laughs as they both watch the Senator’s retreating figure, how she greets Tom like an old friend (and who knows, he might be, it’s just so hard to tell when she’s so warm with everyone) and within moments, they can tell she’s got him hooked. “Sometimes I think I should let the organization throw more of these parties. I won’t even have to show up. I can just invite her and let her go to work.”

Rey grins. “True. She is a force of nature.”

“That she is,” Poe says with a fond smile, before turning back to face Rey. “So, tell me, Rey. What’s your story?”

Rey shrugs, a bit embarrassed. “I don’t have a story.”

Poe shakes his head. “Now I know that’s not true,” and at Rey’s raised eyebrow, he continues. “You came on board the job not too long after I left, and I still hear things. Plus, I keep in touch with the Senator and Skywalker, and they talk. A lot. I’ve heard a lot of things about you.”

“Well, I couldn’t help but hear talk of you around the office, all about the legendary Poe Dameron. People credit the Senator with securing more funding for veterans than ever before, but the way I hear it, she credits you with it completely.”

Poe waves his hand dismissively. “Then they give me way too much credit. It was a team effort, from top to bottom, and there was no way the bills would have ever come close to passing without the Senator. Like you said, she’s a force of nature.”

“So that explains the Senator – but you mentioned Luke …” she says, trailing off as a wide smile overtakes Poe’s face once again.

“Yeah, well – once I finished my last tour of duty, he convinced me to come back and finish my degree. We talked a lot, even after I graduated – he knew my mother well, and we had even served in the same division of the Navy, albeit a couple decades apart. Awhile back he mentioned he had sent another pilot to serve with the Senator, and when the Senator mentioned hiring you, I put two and two together.”

“I’m not a pilot, at least not like you. I never served in the military or anything.”

“Luke still says you were one of the most natural flyers he’s ever seen, took to it like a fish to water starting from the first lesson. Not to mention he spoke very highly of you in his Revolutionary History class on campus. Sounds like you impressed him all around.”

“Did you take the class too?”

“I did! One of my favorite courses, took top marks in it – then again, sounds like I have some competition in that area, too.”

Rey laughs. Despite her initial reservations coming here tonight, she’s enjoying herself. She had heard a lot about the “legendary Poe Dameron” from the other staffers at the office who had been there during his tenure, knew of him from news clips here and there. But despite all the praise surrounding the man, making her think he would be practically unapproachable, she had never felt so comfortable in someone’s presence so quickly.

Poe glances past her towards the table lined with food. She follows his gaze and sees a waiter laying out a large dish. Poe looks back towards her. “If the schedule is right, that should be the crab puffs.”

Rey gasps, her mouth already producing more saliva at the thought. “This place has crab puffs?”

Poe eyes her closely. “My plan was to pretty much eat all of them before anyone else notices they’ve been put out,” he says, and his eyes narrow at Rey’s widening grin. He sighs. “Looks like I’ll have competition in that area too,” he says, grinning, and he sets a quick pace towards the table.

She laughs as she quickly follows him to the table. She overtakes him though, when he has to stop for a moment and shake a donor’s hand, and she’s already biting into a crab puff by the time he’s arrived.

He shoots a quick glance her way before picking up two crab puffs, one in each hand, and shoving them both into his mouth. She giggles around her mouthful of food, and just barely manages to not spew out flecks of it in her amusement.

“Maybe not my brightest idea, but still worth it,” Poe says, once he manages to swallow his bite.

“Totally worth it,” she replies.

They walk up and down the buffet table, talking and laughing as they keep nibbling away at bites of food. There’s a lot to admire about him, Rey thinks, and not just his warm brown eyes that crinkle at the corners when he smiles or his thick, curly hair that she kind of wants to sink her fingers into, and Rey shakes her head a bit to clear it when she realizes the direction her thoughts have turned. Through the little bits of himself that he’s revealed in their conversation, she learned that he had served in the Navy until an injury sent him back home (and she’s curious, but doesn’t pry, not when he subtly turns the conversation away from that topic). But then he came back home and completed his degree, and she discovered that they had each written a strikingly similar thesis to the other. But where he had focused on the failure of the social safety net on recent veterans, she had pursued a similar question in the context of children and young adults.

After talking about her conclusion, he gave her an admiring nod and said, “No wonder you ended up in the Senator’s office.”

“I could say the same about you,” she quickly replied.

And he hadn’t stopped there. Now he’s the head of a national organization trying to end homelessness in veterans, quickly on track to set fundraising goals for the group, while creating coalitions of likeminded groups to advocate for legislation in Congress.

He’s impressive. A natural born leader. But he’s also charming, and intelligent, playful even in the middle of a black tie affair, and most importantly, kind.

In the short span of time she’s been talking to him, she’s afraid she’s become at risk of developing a bit of a crush on him. She’s never been taken with someone so quickly.

When he gets pulled away to talk to a group of donors, the look he sends her way is fascinating, even if she can’t quite decipher it. There’s a bit of an apology there, but something else, something she can’t quite figure out.

“You going to stick around the party for a while?”

“Not planning to go anywhere anytime soon,” she replies.

“Good,” he says, smiling, before he allows his assistant to lead him away.

She glances around the crowd briefly, sees small groups of people chatting along the sides of the party and more and more couples making their way to the dance floor near where the band is playing. She watches for a moment before making her way over to where one of her fellow staffers stands talking to an individual she recognizes as the head of a smaller nonprofit organization in the area.

The Senator then calls her over, and she spends the next half hour chatting with her and a local city administration official. She recognizes the man immediately, the suave smile and fashionable dress instantly identifying him. It was hard to forget a man as memorable as Lando Calrissian, even if she only recognized him from news clips and heard the tales of him from the Senator’s own stories.

It’s easy to talk to Mr. Calrissian, but she keeps finding her eyes drifting to the corner of the room where Poe stands talking to a small handful of very glamorously dressed men and women. She tries to keep an ear on the conversation, listening to the Senator and Mr. Calrissian discuss funding for women’s health before they switch topics to reminisce about an old friend of theirs who had recently moved to Scotland. But each time she catches her focus drifting to that other corner of the room, she immediately drags her attention back to the Senator and Mr. Calrissian. Luckily, neither one seemed to notice how distracted she was.

Or maybe not. The last time she glanced in Poe’s direction, seeing him throw his head back to laugh at something someone had said, she had looked back at her own little group, only to find the Senator looking at her, calm but with the barest hint of a raised eyebrow. Before Rey could even begin to panic, the Senator reaches over to squeeze her shoulder, amusement gleaming in her eyes.

“I apologize, Rey, but I have some private matters I would like to discuss with Lando. If you could excuse us …?”

“Of course, Senator. It was a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Calrissian,” she says, reaching over to give his hand one last shake. With his murmured _likewise_ , she says “Just let me know if you need anything, Senator,” before walking away.

She heads back to the buffet and wanders up and down the table a few times, nibbling at the treats while she eyes the crowd. She recognized the amusement in the Senator’s eyes, knows she’s probably in for a bit of teasing the next time they’re alone together. She’s never been one to be boy-crazy, hasn’t had any major long-term relationships – certainly not since she started to work for the Senator – but nonetheless, the Senator seemed to have a knowing gleam in her eyes when she excused Rey from the conversation.

She’s eyeing a strawberry cheesecake bite, wondering if it’s possible to sneak any out in the impossibly tiny clutch the Senator had recommended to go with the dress (and it’s possibly the first time she’s ever questioned the Senator’s judgment, she thinks, looking between the buffet and her clutch) when she feels a tap on her shoulder. She turns to see Poe Dameron standing there.

“Fancy meeting you here,” he says, his voice teasing. He reaches past her to grab a petit four before biting into it.

“I always know the best places to scope out at parties,” she replies, straight-faced as she bites into her cheesecake bite.

One of Poe’s eyebrows raises up. “Is that so?”

She lets her poker face slip and grins at him. “Not at all,” she says, pausing to finish up her bite of food. “Honestly, never been to many parties at all. In high school,” she says, struggling to figure out how to phrase what she wants to say, “it wasn’t really my scene. And in college – well, in college, I double majored, and I had too many early morning classes.”

“Well, you’re a natural. Going straight to the buffet, getting dibs on all the best food. I remember the first event I staffed for the Senator, I pocketed enough food to feed myself for at least two meals.”

Rey groans, a loud, exaggerated sound. She holds her small clutch up before his face. “Look what I’ve been forced to carry! Can’t sneak anything out in this.”

Poe shrugs, amused. “This is where several deep pockets come in handy.”

Rey huffs. “Pockets.” She shakes her head. “You think I have pockets on this thing?” She gestures her hands up and down the length of her dress.

“Sorry,” he says, grinning. “Guess that leaves more for me to take home.” He reaches over to grab another petit four and bites into it, winking at her.

She shakes her head at him, hoping to conceal any flush that appears on her cheeks. A pleasant silence descends over them as they look out over the crowd and listen to the band finish up its number.

She sees Poe dust off his hands of any remnants of the petit four, sees him inhale a deep breath. She figures he’s going to excuse himself, to either get back to work or to go catch up with his friends at the party, and she prepares herself to say goodbye. She’s a bit more forlorn at the thought then she would otherwise expect after only meeting a person just a few short hours earlier.

He turns towards her, and she meets his gaze as he looks at her. He doesn’t say anything at first though, just looks at her and bites his lip. He looks almost confused, she thinks.

“Yes?” She’s not sure what else to say to him, not when he’s clearly made the first move to say . . . well, whatever he means to say to her.

He thrusts his thumb back over his shoulder, and she looks in the direction he indicates, where the band is just starting its next song. “Would you like to dance?”

“With you?” She blurts it out, and immediately regrets it. Poe’s face falls for a brief moment, before she can shake her head, saying “Wait, wait, that’s not – I just meant – I don’t know how to dance, okay? I’m sure you don’t want to be dancing with me.”

Poe’s face morphs into confusion and then amusement as she continues to talk. “I’m sure I do want to dance with you,” he says. “But if you don’t want to dance with me, that’s fine. The dessert table is pretty nice, anyway. But if it’s just because you say you don’t know how to dance, that’s not a problem.”

Rey scoffs. “It’s not a problem? I’m sure your feet won’t be saying that when I step all over them.”

“It’s not a problem at all! I can show you how,” Poe says, shaking his hips a little as he pretends to dance. Rey can’t help but laugh a little at the display.

Once he stops moving though, he gives her a look. It’s soft, hopeful, and almost a bit surprising considering how confident and outgoing he’s appeared to be all evening. So, when he asks, “So, Rey, will you dance with me? You can step on my feet all you want. I promise not to complain,” she can’t help but say yes.

He holds his hand out to her as he bows at the waist, and although she rolls her eyes at him, she can’t help but smile a little as she takes his hand. He leads them to the dance floor and she’s grateful that he finds a place just far enough from the crowd that it won’t feel too much like she’d be the center of attention when she inevitably steps on his toes. She knows she’s graceful. But she also knows it’s more in that “graceful when I knock my competitor on his ass while kickboxing” and not so much while trying to look elegant in the middle of a fancy ball.

Luckily, it’s easy enough to find the proper places to rest her hands, as she places one on his shoulder and he wraps her other one up in his own. There’s a part of her that is completely comfortable and relaxed as she starts slowly shuffling her feet while following his lead.

But there’s also another part of her that feels jittery and excited along with a thousand other emotions she can’t quite name.

Once they find their rhythm, her fear fades away and she lets the music wash over her, feels the steady presence of Poe near her. It’s nice, and she lets everything else, her work, her stress, all her problems just fade, fade away . . .

She had been so focused on the music, on the feel of Poe so close to her, that hearing his voice is almost a shock. “I think you’re about to be summoned.” She follows the direction of his gaze and sees the Senator and her Chief of Staff standing near the doors. A moment later, the other staffer appears next to them. It’s clear the Senator is saying her farewells and is preparing to leave.

Poe glances at her, a small smile on his face. “I should head over there, too. Say goodnight to her before she leaves,” he says, and Rey gives him a small nod. She moves to take a step back, already regretting that she has to leave his embrace, but he keeps ahold of her hand. “Wait, just a moment. I just . . . well, I wanted to say I’d really enjoyed getting the chance to talk to you tonight. And I’d like to see you again. If you’d like that, too.”

She sees a red flush appear at the top of his cheekbones, and she grins, pleased that she doesn’t seem to be the only one affected by the other.

It’s an easy answer. She doesn’t even have to think about it. “I’d like that, too.”


	2. Chapter 2

Rey sets her office phone back in its cradle before plopping her head down on her desk and heaving out a sigh.

All morning her phone has been ringing off the hook with calls from her counterparts in other Senate offices and policy directors in two of the nation’s largest foster care associations. The Senator had tasked her with putting together a bill to improve policies and procedures in order to produce better outcomes for youth in foster care, as well as to strengthen reporting requirements in the states. It’s been slow going, each step forward seeming slower than molasses, and they’re just days away from a committee hearing on the issue.

To say she’s busy is an understatement. She started the morning by opening a Word document to craft the Senator’s opening remarks on the issue and now . . . well, now she’s written three sentences, and she’s pretty sure the last sentence devolved into nothing but gibberish halfway through.

She audibly groans when her desk phone rings once more. She glances at the caller ID, sees that it’s Rose, the young staffer working the front desk right now.

“Hey Rose, what’s up?”

“Hey Rey, you have a visitor up here,” Rose replies, and Rey is a little confused. Rose would usually say who the visitor is, and Rey doesn’t have any meetings scheduled. Not to mention Rose’s usually serious work voice has a slightly teasing, amused lilt to it at the moment . . .

“I wasn’t expecting anyone, who is it?”

“It’s your lunchtime delivery,” Rose says, and this time Rey can literally hear the smile in her voice.

“I didn’t order any lunch -” Rey starts, before Rose interrupts her.

“I’ll go ahead and send him on back!”

“Wait, what-” and again Rey is interrupted, this time by the dial tone as Rose hangs up on her.

A moment later a knock sounds on her door, and it slowly eases open before a newly familiar head peeks around its edge. If she hadn’t already been flustered by Rose’s abruptness, she certainly is now as she sees Poe Dameron smiling at her.

“Did I catch you at a bad time?”

Well, she’s certainly busy, but as she quickly glances at her computer screen for one quick moment, she figures she could probably use the break. “It can wait,” she says, glancing back at him, a small smile on her face. “Come on in.”

When he opens the door fully to walk in, she can see why Rose called it a lunchtime delivery. Poe’s carrying a plastic bag filled with cartons, and he moves to set it on the small section of her desk that isn’t covered by binders and documents and other office paraphernalia.

“I hope you don’t mind that I just stopped by, but I was already up here for a meeting and it was about lunch time, and I figured you might be hungry.”

Rey laughs as she bats Poe’s hands away from where he’s fiddling with the handles of the bag. “I don’t mind at all,” she says as she unpacks the contents of the bag, setting out the sandwiches before opening the soup containers, the warm, comforting scent of it hitting her nose immediately. “And it’s usually a pretty safe bet that I’m hungry.”

Poe grins. “Well, hopefully the food doesn’t disappoint too much. Since I was already up here, I just picked up food from the cafeteria.” He hands her a spoon, and she immediately digs into the soup.

“So, what brought you up here today?”

Poe swallows his bite of food, wiping his hands on a napkin after he sets his sandwich back down. “Nothing too exciting. I had a meeting with the chair of the Armed Services Committee to go over some notes on a proposed bill. Thought I’d stop by here for a visit when I was done.”

“I’ve been taking calls all morning about a bill the Senator is going to put forth. I’ve been worried that the phone was just gonna keep ringing, and I’d never get the Senator’s remarks done,” she says, glancing at the phone which has gone suspiciously quiet since Poe stopped by. “I’m glad you stopped by, though. It was perfect timing, really.”

Poe grins at her and bites into his sandwich. After that, their lunch passes quickly – more quickly than she would have liked, to be honest – and her abs hurt from how hard she’s laughed during the conversation. It was the most pleasant lunch she’s had in months. More often than not she ate a quick lunch at her desk, or hurriedly scarfed down her food in the Senate cafeteria, or took meetings during lunch. Too soon, however, the phone on her desk rings, and it’s an apologetic Rose telling her that she has a call that can’t wait any longer.

“Can you put them on hold for a few minutes, Rose?”

“Can do, boss,” she says, before hanging up.

Rey turns to Poe, who’s already wrapping up the remnants of their lunch and throwing their trash into the bin. “I’m sorry, Poe,” she says, apologetically. “I didn’t want to rush lunch or anything, but . . .” she says, gesturing helplessly at her desk.

“Duty calls,” he says with a grin. “Don’t forget I used to work here. I know very well that sometimes work just can’t wait.”

She smiles in relief, before he speaks again, his eyes darting between her and her desk a few times, and she wonders at his sudden seeming shyness. “But, um, I was wondering if maybe we can pick this up later, you know? Maybe I can take you on a proper date this time, and not just bring you some sad cafeteria lunch?”

“I’d like that,” she says, as her own shy smile appears on her face, “though I have to say, I really enjoyed this date as well, even if you wouldn’t consider it a proper one or anything.”

His eyes widen, and a delighted smile breaks across his face. “Well, I’m certainly glad you enjoyed it. But just to be clear, I’m not going to consider this a date. No, see, for our first date, I’m going to do it right, I promise you. It’s going to be something much better, something you deserve . . . something special, you know? Not some sad cafeteria soup and sandwiches.”

Rey’s smile widens, and she feels a sudden thrill buzz through her. She very much enjoyed her lunch with Poe, thought he was sweet and kind and very witty. She has no idea what she should expect, what he might consider a proper first date (and her own experience with first dates didn’t generally leave her with high hopes), but Poe’s impressed her so far.

“Well, I’m looking forward to it, Poe.”

\--

The moment he left her office, Poe had started brainstorming ideas for his first date with Rey. The answer hit him so hard it practically took his breath away.

He had just gotten back to his office, when his co-worker had stopped in to ask how his meeting went (and how his lunch went too, Paige had asked with a waggle of her eyebrows, and when he just grinned without saying a word, she simply shrugged and smiled, saying she’d get the answer later from her sister.)

He did mention the numerous plants taking up space in Rey’s small office, and Paige shrugged once more and told him that Rey had grown up in the dessert. She took to green, living things quickly, and according to Rose, her little apartment was even more filled than her office.

So now, on an early Saturday morning, the first weekend he hasn’t worked in months, he’s attempting to smooth down his curly hair into something more manageable before groaning and giving up. It doesn’t matter much anyway. The minute he steps into the DC humidity, his curls just become more pronounced.

He checks the time on his phone once more, making his way outside and down the street towards the metro station. With the crowds around on the weekend, it’s usually best to take public transport, and with the right planning, he’ll be there to greet Rey when she boards at her stop.

It’s smooth sailing as he boards the train and settles in for the trip. Now that he’s sitting still, he can feel the nerves come on, and he takes a deep breath and swipes his palms against the rough material of his pants. He feels younger, strangely inexperienced, even though he’s been on a fair number of first dates in his life. He’s much too old to get nervous about such things anymore.

Then again, he’s never really wanted to impress anyone as much as he does now.

He takes another deep breath, listens to the mechanical voice announce the stop, feels the train rattle as it starts to move once more. As they pull up to the next stop, he sees Rey outside the window, standing along the platform. When he boarded, he texted her to let her know what part of the train he was on, and now she stands outside waiting for it.

He stands while she makes her way on board, feels practically giddy when he sees her smile when she catches sight of him a few rows back. She’s dressed in a pair of dark wash jeans and a deep green sweater, a jacket hanging open over her shoulders, and he thinks she couldn’t look any more beautiful.

He can’t help but tell her that as they settle into their seats, and he’s delighted at the light flush that appears on her cheeks.

It wouldn’t be a first date without a few awkward moments, and as the nerves catch up to him, he stumbles at making small talk, despite how comfortable they’d been with each other when they first met. However, by the time they’re one stop away from their destination, he sees her face light up, and she turns to him with excitement gleaming on her face.

“I’m so glad you chose this, you know. It’s one of my favorite places in the area.”

“Is it now?” He’s smiling, but he’s suddenly worried that the date won’t be as fun for her if this is a place she goes to often.

She quickly relieves him of his doubt, however. “It was one of the first places I came to when I moved here. I didn’t know where I should go, what I should look at first. And I decided on here, since it was so different than Arizona. It was amazing. But I’ve only been able to get out here a few times since I moved here. And I’ve never been to it during the holiday season! What about you? You come here often?” And she says this last part with a teasing wink, like a bad pick-up line at some cheap bar, and he can’t help but laugh at her comical expression.

“I actually came here as a kid. My parents took me on a vacation here for Christmas break. It was the first time I ever saw snow. I was young, and a little freaked out by it, cause I’m from south Florida, so snow?” He shook his head, grinning a little at the memory. “It was super weird at first. But they took me to the holiday exhibition and then we visited the Jungle Room, and honestly, it was one of the best memories I have as a kid.”

And just like that, any awkwardness was overcome, and they settled into comfortable conversation quickly. He enjoyed her enthusiasm, especially as they exited the train and walked towards the United States Botanic Garden, her excitement practically making her skip the last few steps towards the entrance.

She grasps his hand as she leads them towards the Jungle Room, and he startles a bit at the unexpected feeling of her fingers against his. He quickly settles into the feeling however, and grins at her when he feels her eyes on him as they enter the room.

“Is it like you remember?”

He glances around and up, taking in the overwhelming sight and smell of all the green that filled the large room.

He grins at her. “Yes and no. But it’s still as amazing as ever.”

She returns his smile, glances around the room once more, shaking her head a little as she takes it all in. “It’s amazing to me that there can even be this much green in the galaxy. Not a lot of it in Arizona.”

He likes the look on her face, the joy and amazement all mingling together . . . he’s now completely sure that he made the right choice in suggesting this place. “Where to next?”

They head to the orchid room, and he’s astounded by her knowledge of the flowers, as she names one after another. He thinks that if she ever wanted to step away from government, she would be right at home here.

Soon enough they make their way to the holiday exhibition. It’s early in the season, and the crowds haven’t quite made their way to the exhibit yet, so they take their time and marvel at each new sight. He’s never enjoyed a first date – any date – as much as this one, and by the time they leave the gardens and get some food and talk some more, he’s already feeling a little sad this one is ending. He hopes she’ll give him a chance for a second one.

He’s walking her to her stop, going in the opposite direction from where they came from this morning, which also means it’s in the opposite direction from where he’s going. She’s meeting Rose and another friend for dinner (“His name is Finn. You know, I think you two would get along really, really well,” she says, a thoughtful look on her face.)

He sighs a little as they reach her station, but he smiles at her when she turns to look at him. She needs to head inside to catch her train, but he just wants to hold onto her hand for a bit longer while he gathers himself together to ask her for the second date (and hopefully not embarrass himself by asking for a third and a fourth date all at the same time, he just has to keep telling himself one step at a time.)

He takes in a deep breath, but she beats him to the punch. “Can I see you again?”

He had been preparing himself to say something similar, and it takes him a moment to get his brain back on track from where it’s now jumping up and down in excitement. “Yeah. Yeah, absolutely, I’d really like that.”

Her smile widens in pleasure, and she says “Great! I’ll text you to figure out the next date, okay? I’ve got the hearing early next week, but after that I’m totally free.” And she’s blushing a little as she talks, but she’s still grinning at him, and he nods at her in a way he hopes doesn’t come off as way too eager.

He’s pretty sure it comes off as way too eager, but he can’t help it. He’s thrilled with the way things have been turning out today.

“Great, I’m really looking forward to that!”

He’s still holding her hand, but she’s not making a move to let go, and he’s a little worried that she’s going to be late for her train, but everything just feels so good right now that he really doesn’t want to push her away at all. But he doesn’t want her to be inconvenienced by missing her train, so he reluctantly says, “Rey, your train . . . “

And her smile turns a little softer but no less lovely, but instead of stepping away she moves forward until she’s only inches from him. His breath catches a little in his chest and he can’t help that his gaze drops down to her lips for a moment before darting back to her eyes.

She’s clearly caught the movement though, and she lets her own gaze move to his mouth, before slowly drifting back to his eyes. “Poe,” she says. “Can I . . .?”

“Please,” he replies, his voice soft.

She leans in and presses her mouth to his. It’s sweet and slow, but still his heart beats quick in his chest as he feels her soft lips against his. One of his hands drifts up to cup her cheek, and he can feel one of hers grip his bicep. The kiss is over far quicker than he’d like, but he’s comforted by the pleased look on her face and the way she lingers just a moment longer, nuzzling her face into the palm of his hand.

A moment later, she softly says, “I need to go,” and he nods, feels at a loss for words after that kiss, finally says, “See you soon, Rey.”

She nods and smiles back at him, says “See you soon, Poe,” before walking into the station.

He watches as she disappears from sight, stands there a bit longer before bringing his fingers to rest against his lips for a brief moment. With one last smile, he makes his way for home.


	3. Chapter 3

Rey felt practically giddy. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon; the fall air was brisk, and the sun was shining. And for the first time in weeks, she felt well rested. The day prior, the Senator had walked through the office declaring an early end to the work day. And as she walked by Rey, she squeezed Rey’s shoulder while giving her an open, proud smile, and Rey had felt like she was floating as she saved her work and shut down her computer for the day.

It had been a busy few weeks. The hearing had gone off without a hitch, and the bill passed through committee. And during one late-night phone call, Poe had remembered that a high-profile Senator on the Armed Forces Committee who he had worked with extensively had two grandchildren who were both adopted, and who could probably be persuaded to sign on to the bill. With that little tip she had set up a meeting with one of his staffers, who brought it to the Senator who quickly came on board, an early and vocal proponent of the bill. That led to several other key Senators signing on to the bill, and Rey had noted every single one of their names with a broad smile as she tallied up the support for the bill so close to her heart. And the Senator herself was working to secure bipartisan support for when the bill would eventually come to the floor for a vote.

The Senator was pleased with her work, and more importantly, the Senator was sure the bill would pass.

She texted Poe later, thanking him for the advice, that integral bit of knowledge that he had shared which almost ensured the passage of the bill. With both his and Senator Organa’s support, enough senators were sure to vote “aye”.

Rey celebrated by going home, jumping into a warm bath, and eating a pint of ice cream while in her pajamas. She’d only seen her bed for a couple of hours each night and spent all the rest of her time in her office.

As she turned off the lights and curled up in bed, her phone lit up with one final text from Poe, who’d been on the west coast for donor meetings the last week.

_Sweet dreams, sunshine._

She was sure she’d fallen asleep with a smile on her face. And she was certain she’d woken up with it still there.

They had only seen each other once since their first date at the Botanic Gardens, for a late dinner one night, since their schedules had been so jam-packed. But now he’s back from his cross-country tour to drum up support for his organization, and her work on the bill has hit a lull now that government is slowing down for the holiday season, and Christmas was fast approaching, and finally . . .

Finally, they’re going to see each other again. She’s still giddy from the newness of it all, still amazed at how comfortable it all feels, how it had felt right to make the first move and kiss him after their time at the gardens . . .

She hasn’t had much experience with relationships in her life, hasn’t even really met that many people she would even consider having a relationship with, but she knows that something about this feels more right than she could have ever imagined.

She steps off the train and makes her way to the National Mall, dodging pedestrians, bicyclists, and skateboarders in her haste to see Poe again. He told her he had someone very special for her to meet right before sending her a video of the cutest corgi she’d ever seen in her life. The little guy was jumping and running circles around Poe’s legs while Poe asked, “who’s excited to see Rey? Who’s excited?”

Luckily, the weather made for a nice walk and within minutes she sees Poe, dressed in jeans and a warm sweater, walking towards her with the little corgi leading the way.

The corgi is steps ahead of Poe, so she kneels down, letting the little dog step up on to her thighs as he licks at her face in greeting. She laughs and pets his soft fur before letting her hands run over the bright orange sweater encasing his stout body.

“What a stylish sweater! You look very nice today, good sir,” she says jokingly to the corgi. He just wags his butt a little harder, practically moving his entire back half with the strength of the movement.

“Oh sure, what am I, chopped liver? I can’t even get a hello,” a teasing voice says from above her.

She looks up to see Poe grinning down at her, and she just shrugs and grins back up at him. She gestures to the little dog and says, “Well, can you blame me?”

He sighs, and shrugs his shoulders. “Not at all. BB’s the best,” he says and kneels down to join them, scratching between his dog’s ears.

“So, you’ve never actually told me how he got his name,” she says, giggling as the dog’s wet nose nudges her hand to encourage her to keep petting him. “Is BB short for something?”

Poe laughs, but Rey notices it’s a bit quieter than Poe’s usual joyful laugh. His face turns a bit more thoughtful before he says, “Kind of, I guess. BB King was my mother’s favorite musician, and I had been listening to some of his albums right around the time I adopted him, and it seemed like a good name.” A wide grin appeared on Poe’s face then, as he leaned over to pat at BB’s side. “Plus, when I brought him  home, he easily made himself the king of my little apartment, so it just made sense.”

Rey laughs, rubbing under BB’s chin and letting him lick at her face once more before standing up. “Well, I can see why. I’ve only known him a few minutes and he’s already got me wrapped around his little paw.”

They stroll along the mall for a while, letting BB and his nose lead the way. At some point Poe’s hand nudges against hers, and it’s so easy to wrap her fingers around his own. Too soon, the sun starts dipping closer to the horizon, and the temperature starts dropping, and she lets Poe lead them back to his car.

After securing BB into the backseat, she gets into the passenger seat while Poe gets behind the wheel. The moment Poe starts up the car, her stomach takes the opportunity to growl loudly, and she’s momentarily embarrassed when Poe looks confused before turning to face her.

“I thought that was the car for a moment” he says, trailing off as he looks at her. She can feel her cheeks heating up, but when his eyes meet hers, he bursts out laughing and she can’t help but join in. “You should have told me you were hungry, we could’ve stopped and got something!”

She’s gasping for breath between her laughter, but manages to say, “In my defense, I’m always hungry.”

“I need to drop BB off first if you want to go somewhere. Or I’ve got the stuff to make spaghetti if you want to eat at my place.”

Spaghetti sounds like heaven to her, and in twenty minutes they arrive at Poe’s apartment, and BB immediately goes to curl up in his bed in the corner of the living room. The apartment has an open floor plan, and it’s easy enough to continue the conversation while he cooks and she looks around. She takes in his bookshelf filled with a mixture of military non-fiction and sci-fi and fantasy stories, a couple of Jane Austen books sitting next to Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. Pictures frames are scattered around shelves and upon walls, and she grins at how prominent BB is in most of the recent ones. A photo of him and the Senator on Capitol Hill is on the wall, and she recognizes several of the Senator’s current and former staffers as well in other pictures. 

There’s a separate section of photographs, more personal ones, ones where Poe stands with people who are clearly family. She can pick out Poe’s father almost instantly, dark brown eyes, warm smiles, and broad shoulders clearly being a family trait. In one photo there’s Poe as a young man in military uniform standing with his arm around his father. She smiles at the picture, at how clearly loving their relationship is. There’s a photo next to it, this time of a much younger Poe, probably no more than four or five years old. He’s at an airfield, and a beautiful woman in a flight suit, with the same dark, curly hair that Poe has, is kneeling next to him, their arms wrapped around each other in a hug. Poe’s father, a younger version of the man standing next to Poe in the other photograph, kneels right behind them, his arms wrapped around both.

It doesn’t take much to piece together the fact that she must no longer be around. She doesn’t appear in any of the other photographs, and recalling their earlier conversation, Poe had used the past tense when he had told her that BB King was his mother’s favorite musician, followed by a melancholy little smile before it had quickly been replaced by his usual good cheer.

She knows what it’s like to have an empty spot where a parent is supposed to be. Her heart aches for him.

“And dinner is served!” Poe’s enthusiastic voice intrudes on her thoughts and she takes a deep breath to center herself before walking towards the kitchen.

Poe’s thrown together a salad to go with the spaghetti, and it’s honestly one of the most delicious meals she’s eaten in a long time. It’s certainly the first homecooked meal she’s eaten in a while. Most of her recent meals have involved either Chinese take-out or Ramen noodles, sometimes with an egg thrown in if she’s feeling fancy.

His jaw sits slightly agape when she tells him that. “Christ, Rey, how do you not . . . not – how do you not have scurvy or something?”

She bursts out laughing. “Scurvy? Where did that come from?” At Poe’s helpless shrug, she grins, says, “C’mon Poe, I do eat my fruits and vegetables. Now, it’s in my beef and broccoli, and the cafeteria sells bananas . . .” and she laughs again at his still somewhat horrified expression.

He sighs. “I forget how much take-out I ate while working on the Hill. But seriously, we’ve gotta get you fed right.”

“You gonna cook for me, Mr. Dameron?”

He grins. “That sounds like a wonderful idea, Ms. Kenobi. Whenever you’d like, just say the word.”

When she hits the bottom of her spaghetti bowl, he immediately fills it with a second helping, and she kisses him on the cheek for already knowing the way to her heart.

Once she’s done with her second bowl, she helps him carry the dishes back into the kitchen. It feels like a dance, the way they move around each other so in sync, putting the leftover food back in the fridge and loading the dishwasher with their dishes.

She giggles a little at the thought, at the wild flight of fancy her mind has taken, romanticizing the simple act of doing dishes. _Christ, Rey_ , she thinks to herself, _you’re in deep. You’ve barely known him for more than a few weeks._

He turns around at her giggle, an amused grin causing the corners of her lips to twitch up. “What is it?”

She shakes her head a little, feels a giddy little something settle deep in her chest as she looks at him, taking in his bright eyes and sweet grin, the way a single curl seems to gravitate away from the rest of his curls, until it’s sitting alone above his temple. She reaches up to brush it back, lets her hand linger on his cheek.

The giddy feeling transforms into something a little warmer, sitting lower in her gut, and she marvels at the way his eyes seem to heat up as they gaze back at her.

She spots a smidge of sauce sitting just off the corner of his mouth, and she can’t help it. She leans in, brushes her lips against that spot. She can hear the hitch in his breath, and leans back from him, just enough to look into his eyes once more.

Barely a moment later, they collide into one another. It’s heated from the start, her hands clutching at his shoulders, one of his arms pulling her closer while his other hand goes up to cradle her head. His fingers comb through her hair as his lips press against hers. She feels his tongue running against her bottom lip, and she lets him in. She’s already a mess from all the sensations, and she tries to pull him even closer, her hands fisting the fabric of his shirt, and somehow they end up with her back pressed against the counter. It’s not the most comfortable feeling with the edge of the counter pressing into the small of her back, but she wouldn’t change it, not with the way he gasps for air as he moves to change the angle of the kiss, makes it a little deeper, moves down to press his lips under her jaw, against the sensitive skin of her neck.

She’s not sure how much time has passed when they break apart, his face tucked into the side of her neck while they both catch their breath. But she feels warm, almost drunk, from the heat of the kiss, and she pets his hair in an attempt to calm herself down.

But at the same time, she doesn’t really want to calm down. She wants more.

Poe stands up straight again, but doesn’t move away from her. He remains in her arms even as he gazes into her eyes, something unreadable in his expression. He leans down, presses one more soft kiss to her lips, before kissing her forehead.    

He pulls back with a sweet smile on his face. “You want to stay awhile and watch a movie?”

That’s an easy answer. “I’d love to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmm, it's probably about time to insert some drama into this story . . . :D


	4. Chapter 4

Rey woke to a loud noise early on Monday morning, and reached an uncoordinated hand out to hit her alarm clock. She stretched lazily, her arms extending above her head as she tried to psych herself up to get out of bed and ready for the day.

It had been a lovely weekend. There had been the walk on the National Mall followed by spaghetti at Poe’s, followed by making out on and off while a movie played in the background. She grinned a little remembering Poe’s kiss swollen lips and mussed up hair. The image was enticing even now, and it was even more so then, and she had asked him to stay the night. With a slightly regretful smile, he kissed her forehead and had said “Not yet, sweetheart. Let me take my time with you, alright?” And she smiled and kissed him once more on the lips before he slipped out the door.

It’s not like they had even been apart all that long. He left a little after midnight, and they had met for breakfast the next morning.

Still, those hours in between felt much too long.

She sighed. Then her phone beeped.

She rolled over, grabbing for her phone when she spied her clock. It was still 45 minutes before her alarm was set to go off.

Strange. What had woken her up then?

She glanced at her phone, eyes widening. 10 missed texts, all within the last 15 minutes.

Well, that answered her question.

Rey furrowed her brow in confusion. The texts were all from the Senator’s Chief of Staff, Amilyn Holdo, instructing everyone to come in immediately, even though it was still almost three hours until the usual start of the work day.

In quick succession, the Chief of Staff continued her barrage of messages. No one was to answer any other calls or texts or emails, particularly from reporters. Be wary of them around the building, too. Don’t talk to anyone until you arrive. Most importantly, get to the office ASAP.

Rey was getting used to the Chief of Staff’s strange communication style. Mrs. Holdo had been working alongside the Senator for years, and while the Senator and her had a shorthand way of speaking, and the Senator could easily translate Mrs. Holdo’s more random musings, that easy interpretation did not often apply elsewhere.

However, this time there was no need to interpret Mrs. Holdo’s communications.

Something serious had happened.

She needed to get to the office immediately.

She scurried out of bed, hurriedly dashing to her closet and then the bathroom. Barely twenty minutes later, she was throwing her hair up in a bun, grabbing a few granola bars and an energy drink, and running out the door and to her metro stop.

The odds were low that there would be any journalists or beltway bloggers on board the exact same train as her, even lower odds that they’d recognize her. But, just to be safe, she found a seat far enough away from the few other passengers on board at this early hour before pulling out her cell phone.

She scrolled through CNN first. Nothing caught her eye. Then NPR, The Hill, and Huffington Post. Nothing there either. Then again, depending on what happened, if something just broke, reporters would be confirming the news from their sources, writing up copy . . . it could be a little while between whatever happened, happened, and whenever the news appeared in the media.

She was just about to pull up twitter, as gossip and other news sometimes made its way there first, but the train pulled up to the her stop. She hurried out once more, pulling her scarf a bit higher up her neck as she made her way to Capitol Hill.

Within minutes she was walking into the office, where a handful of other staffers were waiting just inside. She could smell coffee brewing in their little kitchen, see mugs of it clutched in the hands of the staffers, all of them wearing confused expressions on their faces.

She sits down next to Rose and hands her the extra granola bar that she had stashed in her bag that morning.

Rose smiles, a tight-lipped expression. “Thanks,” she says, before ripping into the packaging.

Rey leans over a bit closer to Rose to whisper in her ear. “Any idea what’s going on?”

“No idea,” Rose replies, after she swallows her food. “But it seems bad, you know? It’s just, you can practically feel it in the air.”

And Rey gets it, can feel the tension herself, even if she couldn’t see it in the way Karé sits, almost too calm, a strange counterpoint to her usual high-energy nature. There’s Kaydel, their Communications Director, staring towards the back of the office, where the Senator and Mrs. Holdo have offices, a faint light streaming out from below Mrs. Holdo’s door. The Senator’s office remains dark. Everyone seems to be tapping their foot, scrolling through their news feeds on their phones, or otherwise moving around anxiously.

Rey is starting to get nervous. No one seems to know anything. There’s still been no breaking news alerts on her phone. Mrs. Holdo seems to be in her office, but there seems to be no sign of the Senator.

Rey feels panic take root in her gut, at the idea of anything happening to the Senator, before she closes her eyes, takes a deep breath in, and wills it to subside. She continues her breathing exercises until the brunt of the anxiety subsides, a trick she learned the hard way long ago.

She’s in the middle of a deep inhalation, the soothing rhythm and gentle noise of it calming her soul, when she hears the door in the back of the office crack open. She opens her eyes immediately, all her attention focused on that door, and sees Mrs. Holdo and Senator Organa step out.

Her relief at seeing the Senator unharmed only lasts a moment. The next, she sees the look on the Senator’s face, and her breath catches in her throat. The Senator’s face is stern, resolved, and her spine is straight. But there’s pain there, too, something hidden deep in her eyes, but not totally undetectable.

Something has wounded the Senator, that much is clear. But clearly, she’s preparing herself for a fight.

Rey spares a moment to wonder what the problem is this time. The Senator has seen her share of hardship and fought many battles in her lifetime but came out on top every time. At her core, the Senator is a good and honorable human being. But Rey sometimes thinks that when someone is so good, so strong, it almost seems inevitable that the opposite is right around the corner. The dark almost always seems attracted to the light, for one reason or another.

Rey doesn’t know what the problem is this time. But she knows she’ll be there beside the Senator, fighting the good fight, too.

Mrs. Holdo directs them to the conference room. The Senator sits at one end of the table, while Mrs. Holdo stands near the television. The rest of the staff quickly takes seats around them.

“We received a package last night containing a USB drive. It contains a video,” Mrs. Holdo says, inserting a USB drive and setting it to play.

A dark room appears on screen, while a fumbling cameraman attempts to steady what is probably his smartphone. The faces of most of the people in the crowd mostly appear in shadow, and the indecipherable hum of a crowd comes through the speakers. Finally, the cameraman steadies his hands, and zooms in tight to a podium set up on a low stage. Most of the light in the room illuminated the stage and that podium, where a pale, red-haired man spoke in vehement and angry tones, railing against minorities, immigrants, the decline of “traditional American values.” The blacks and reds of the curtains lining the back of the stage and the drapery atop the podium evokes some of the worst movements, some of the worst moments, in human history.

Rey’s disgusted as she studies the background, listens to the language, the fear and anger in the speaker’s tone and the crowd’s cheering response to some of the more violent aspects of the speech.

She wonders why they’re watching this, why this video was sent to the Senator.

Then, the camera zooms out a little, encompassing the rest of the stage, and Rey gasps. She hears that sound echoed throughout the room, the rest of the staff equally as shocked and surprised.

There, sitting at the table behind the podium, at the back of the stage, is Ben Solo, the dark haired and angry son of Leia Organa and Han Solo. She’s met him twice, and both times felt ill at ease in his presence, feeling that something strange and angry lurked beneath the surface . . . but she never expected this, not with who his parents were.

Then again, she of all people knew that sometimes blood didn’t mean much of anything, really.

But nonetheless, Ben Solo sat there, nodding along with the speech, standing and clapping as it ended. He didn’t say anything when the other man concluded his remarks, but while the crowd continued to cheer, the camera zoomed in to where Ben Solo, the red-haired man, and an older, somewhat disfigured man stood talking while the lights came back up above the rest of the crowd.

Then the screen went black.

No one said anything while Mrs. Holdo took out the USB drive and pocketed it. No one dared to look anywhere but down at the table or at the now blank screen.

At least, not until the Senator spoke, her voice strong and resolute. “Let me be clear,” she said, and Rey, along with the rest of the table, finally looked at the Senator straight on once more. “Hate has no place here. I am ashamed that someone I love apparently now espouses such,” and she pauses, shaking her head in disgust, “horrible, violent, hateful views. Ben cut us out of his life a few years ago, and I had no idea of who he was becoming, or who he was spending his time with, until now. But I have fought hate and intolerance and oppression my entire life, and will continue to do so, even if that means I’m fighting against my own son. Because this country, this world, deserves so much better.”

Of course, it’s Karé Kun who speaks up first. “We’re with you, Senator.” A murmur of agreement arises from the other occupants of the room.

“Before you say that, you might want to know what will likely be headed our way,” the Senator says.

Karé sits up a little straighter, a resolute expression on her face. “I’ve never backed down from the good fight before. Don’t intend to start now.”

At that, the rest of the staff expressed their agreement, everyone else sitting up a little straighter, too.

“All right then, let’s get down to business,” the Senator says, gesturing to Mrs. Holdo to continue the discussion.

Mrs. Holdo picked up the conversation then, running through the probable timeline of this information getting to the press. With the number of individuals in the crowd, it seemed to be a matter of sooner rather than later.

Kaydel had pulled out her padfolio, already sketching out some notes. “What if we release the information first?”

“That’s a good idea. Let’s go ahead and schedule a press conference,” the Senator says.

“How do you feel about a one-on-one interview with one of the major networks after?”

“Yes, absolutely. These people shouldn’t be allowed to hide in the darkness, spewing hate, thinking that we wouldn’t push back. Let’s bring all this out into the light of day.”

On and on, the discussion continued, planning for the press conference, outreach to constituent groups who would need to be reassured of the Senator’s commitments to human rights, citizens who need to hear about her steadfast opposition to all that is dark and evil in the world, even if that meant fighting her own son.

At the end of the meeting, the air is more determined and purposeful than it had been at the start. They all know they were about to head straight into a fight of epic proportions, but it’s one they are now ready to meet and determined to win. Rey finalizes her notes for the day and goes to stand with the rest of the staffers who are headed out of the room to begin their tasks. Rey takes one last moment and glances over at the Senator. She’s gazing out of the office window, her hands neatly folded on the table in front of her. Once again, Rey is in awe at the determination that seems to radiate out of the Senator’s very pores, even while there seems to be a deep well of sadness shining in her eyes from the burden of yet another tragedy.

The Senator’s head turns, and their eyes meet.

Rey thinks there’s an unwritten understanding that passes between the two women at that moment.

Rey nods and stands to leave.

_Time to get this fight started._

\--

Poe’s sitting in the conference room at work with the rest of his staff, discussing the upcoming week. It’s something they do every Monday – discuss their plans and get fired up for the week to come.

It’s also a chance to regal his co-workers with stories of some of the weirder moments of his recent cross-country trip. Something always goes a bit wrong, or a little bit sideways, but he always manages to come out of the other side of it, a little bruised sometimes, but usually with his goals accomplished.

At the least, it’s a way to start out everyone’s Monday with a laugh.

He lets Paige, his Chief of Staff, take the floor once he’s done. She’s going to give everyone a proper overview of the organization’s goals this week, before letting the other director’s give a brief spiel on their departments. They have it down to a science now, a short and sweet meeting to hopefully lead in to a smooth workweek.

There are no trips planned for this week or the next, and if everything goes to plan, he’ll be out of the office on time. With the holiday slowdown on Capitol Hill, Rey might even get out of work on time, too. It’s a lovely thought, after spending so much time apart thanks to work and donor trips, only having the phone to connect them, that he might be able to spend more time in her company.

He tries to control his smile at the thought. He’s supposed to be paying attention.

But he’s never become so enamored with someone else so quickly. He’s had a few relationships in his life, but between his military career, followed by his devotion to Senator Organa and her work, followed by his transition to his current job . . . well, he’s never had much free time. And between the lack of time, and what he knows to be his sometimes over the top romanticism and idealism, the thought that the _ideal partner_ was just out there waiting for him – sometimes his relationships floundered before they even had the chance to take off.

But he wants to make time, now, wants to take his time with her. She deserves it. This sweet, brilliant young woman has captured his heart and he’s eager to keep learning about her, wants to take his time to really get to know her. She’s become a bright spot in his life, and he just wants to bask in her light.

His eyes widen a bit as he realizes how far his thoughts have strayed, when he was supposed to be focusing on the meeting. With a subtle glance around, he releases a breath, as no one seems to have caught him daydreaming. He turns his attention back to Paige, as she concludes her remarks and turns the floor over to the next speaker.

He wonders if Rey would want to go to dinner with him, tonight, even though they had pretty much just spent the entire weekend together. He’ll have to text her when he gets out of this meeting. At this point, it shouldn’t even take another twenty minutes.

A movement from the corner of his eye catches his attention, and he sees their receptionist slip in the doorway. She knows that during this meeting all calls go to voicemail, so when she slips him a note, his heart drops.

The note is brief but concise: _Senator Organa is on hold for you. She says it’s urgent._

He taps Paige on the shoulder as he gets up, whispers that she’s in charge of the meeting, until – if – he gets back.

If the Senator thinks something is urgent, it could take a while.

\--

Rey is exhausted. She had been on the phone all morning, with one key constituent after another, attempting to calm the anger and disappointment, while assuring them that, while the Senator was about to get hit hard, she wouldn’t go down without a fight.

Then the Senator came back from a meeting with the party leadership and went straight to the press conference. The only break Rey had all day was when most of the staff gathered around the TV to watch.

If Rey had thought she was busy before, her phone started blowing up once the press conference concluded, and email after email started rolling in. Rose was busy working the front desk as usual, bearing the brunt of the worst, most vitriolic expressions of hate and disdain. The interns were culling through the emails and other messages that were coming in.

At one point someone brought in a sandwich platter, and she hurriedly stuffed bites of a ham and cheese sandwich in her mouth while waiting on hold for yet another phone call. She’s got a Word document open on her desktop, attempting to craft some language for a letter that the Senator could sign that would be sent as a follow up to a few of the calls.

She doesn’t remember tasting the sandwich at all.

By the end of the day, her to-do list spanned almost two full pages in her notebook, and she’s sure that by the time she gets back to work the next morning, she’ll probably need to add another page to the list.

The first chance she gets to look at her cell phone is when she’s on the train headed back home, hours after her usual time to leave. She sees two missed texts from Poe, and for the first time that day, she feels a smile come upon her face.

_The Senator just called to let me know what’s happening. I know you’re about to be slammed, but I just want to let you know how proud I am of the work you do. Just know that I’m with you – all of you – in spirit today, okay? Let me know if you need anything._

The text was long, but then again, Poe was a pretty chatty man, and his texts always seemed to run longer than normal, to Rey’s great amusement. Rey glanced quickly at the timestamp, noting that it had come in early that morning, well before the news broke. The second one was from only about a half hour ago.

_Hey sweetheart, I hope you’re doing okay. I don’t know what time you’ll be getting out of the office tonight, but if you’re hungry or want company afterwards, I can stop by or bring you some food, whatever you want. If you’d rather be alone, I understand that, too. Just let me know._

Rey rereads that text, particularly the sweetheart bit, and feels a warmth wash over her. Her fingers fly over the keyboard to return the text.

_Pizza?_

The reply is almost instantaneous. _Sounds good. What kind?_

_Pepperoni. I’ll be home in 20. Come over whenever._

\--

Less than 40 minutes later, a knock sounds on her front door. Rey pads out of her room barefoot, now clad in the coziest pair of flannel pajamas she owned, face stripped of makeup, and hair in a bun. She couldn’t bring herself to care much about her appearance, not after the day she had. Then again, she thinks, Poe probably wouldn’t care, either.

She opens the door and is immediately hit with the delicious scent of pizza and whatever else is in the box sitting atop it. She closes her eyes, breathes in deeply, and reopens her eyes to see Poe grinning at her appreciative reaction.

“I’m so hungry,” she practically moans, stepping aside to let Poe enter.

“I bet,” Poe replies, heading straight to the kitchen table to set the boxes down. He starts opening them while she goes to grab some plates and sodas for them.

“I think I had a sandwich several hours ago, but honestly, I don’t even remember eating it. Oh my goodness! You got breadsticks and cinnamon twists, too!” She leans over to give him a kiss on the cheek, and teasingly says, “My hero.”

Poe chuckles, and starts loading his plate. “This sort of day deserves going all out with the junk food.” He pauses, clearing his throat, and his tone becomes serious. “But honestly, how’s everyone holding up? How are _you_ holding up?”

“The Senator’s holding up.  She never seems to waver, though I know how hard this must be for her.” Rey bites into a breadstick while she thinks about the rest of her answer. “I think we’re all holding up as best we can. We’re just hoping to do right by her.”

Poe nods, wraps an arm around her shoulder and leads them to the couch to eat. “I talked to her earlier, let her know she has my support, both personally and publicly. Whatever she needs from me, she’s got it. Same to you, alright? If I can help you in anyway, just let me know. I’m here for you.”

She nods, feeling a little too emotional to reply, a thick lump starting to form in her throat. When they sit, she sets her plate carefully in her lap before leaning in to his side, his warmth already starting to soothe her.

She flips on the television, and they sit there, mindlessly watching reruns while eating. She’s glad to have the chance to turn her mind off and just let herself be, without any pressure. In the past, she’s generally preferred to be by herself when stressed or upset, but now, in this moment, she’s glad that Poe’s sitting there with her, a reassuring and comforting presence while the rest of her world seems to have gone mad.

She swallows a bite of cinnamon twist, and for a moment she thinks a bit of the cinnamon sugar must have irritated her sinuses, as she sniffs.

A moment later, when she raises her hand to wipe at her eyes and they come back wet, she realizes she’s crying, and she doesn’t even know when it started. She breathes in slowly, tries to keep her breath steady, hoping that it might stop before it really gets going.

That seems to have been too much to hope for, her body finally seeming to sense release, and she exhales a shaky breath that quickly escalates into a sob.

Poe doesn’t say anything, just sets his plate on the table before grabbing hers to do the same. The arm that had been wrapped around her shoulders pulls her closer, and he turns his body towards hers, wrapping her up in a hug. She tucks her head just under his chin and moves closer, until she thinks there’s no space at all left between them.

She cries, cries more than she has in ages, feeling a bit adrift in the sudden onslaught of feelings that she’s tried for the longest time to bury. Poe’s rubbing her back and hair, hums something under his breath interspersed with sweet phrases whispered in her ear while the tears continue to flow.

She’s not sure how long she cries on his shoulder, but he holds her tight through it all. She slowly becomes aware of the world once again, the sound of the TV in the background, the smell of the pizza lingering in the air, the scent of Poe much closer to her and his steady, soothing hand rubbing her back. She releases a shaky breath into his neck and wipes her face with her hand, before breathing deeply in and out a few more times.

“I don’t understand it,” she says quietly, her voice raspier than normal.

“I know. I don’t either.”

Rey lets the silence linger for a moment while she grasps for the words she wants. There’s just so much going on inside, that she can’t quite figure out how to express it. “I haven’t known either the Senator or Han Solo all that long, and Skywalker only a little while longer, but even still – I know them well enough to know that this is the absolute opposite of what they believe.”

“You’re right. I’ve known them for a long, long time, and you’re right.”

“Then how? How could someone like _that_ ,” and she practically hisses the word, “come from those two? They’re wonderful! They deserve so much better than that.”

“I know, sweetheart. I can’t understand how he could become like that when he had such good examples of good, honorable people in front of him. I guess sometimes you can do everything right, and still things can go horribly wrong.”

“Did you know him? You said your parents were friends of his family, you’ve known them for a while – did you know Ben?”

Poe hums, considering the question. “A little, I guess. We met when we were kids, on a couple occasions played together, hung out when our parents were visiting. So, I guess you could say we were friends. But then,” and she can feel the movement in his throat when he swallows from where her head remains tucked in between his neck and shoulder, “then my mother passed away and the Senator was elected and spent most of her time in DC. I didn’t see them for years. Once I started working for her, I saw him once or twice when he stopped by the office, but we never really talked much then.”

She’s still trying to grasp for answers that continue to elude her. “How could he have had all that and thrown it away by supporting those people? I just can’t understand it. He cut them out of his life and became everything they’ve worked against.” She can only whisper the words, the terrible thought overwhelming her, that Ben Solo could have taken everything good and loving and decent in his life and thrown it all away. Poe’s hand still rubs at her back, and it gives her the courage to continue. “I never had parents. Just a series of foster homes, bumped from one to the next. A few were indifferent, one” she swallows hard, “one was actively horrible. But I never would have become like Ben, no matter what. And if I had parents? Parents like Han and the Senator? I never would have thrown all that away.”

There’s a deep well of sadness still sitting inside her, but she doesn’t feel like crying anymore. She’s too exhausted for that now. Her muscles feel heavy, and she only wants two things at this moment: to stay in Poe’s arms, just like this, where his murmured words and strong arms have made her feel more secure than she can ever remember being, and to sleep.

She stifles a yawn against his shoulder, before whispering, “Stay. Please.”

“You sure?” Poe asks, as he smooths a hand across her hair.

She reluctantly pulls herself out of his arms, runs a hand across her face as she stands. “I need sleep. And I’d like for you to stay, if you want to. I don’t want to be alone tonight.” She holds her hand out to him, and he uses it to heft himself up from the couch.

His smile is gentle when he replies. “Yeah. I’ll stay.”

Soon enough they’re curled up in bed, and despite the agony of the day, she’s warm and comfortable in her flannel pajamas, wrapped securely in Poe’s arms. It’s not how she imagined their first time sharing a bed would be like, but it feels good. It feels right.

She falls asleep far quicker than she’s had in recent memory.


	5. Chapter 5

Poe hangs up the phone, and rubs at his tired eyes. Fundraising picks up over the holidays, and he has a list of donors to call before his vacation officially starts.

He’s been at the office late most nights recently, so that he could call the west coast donors in the evening. He likes most of the donors that he’s gotten the opportunity to talk to, and it makes these long nights more bearable. He’s always been a people person, eager to talk and ask questions and learn about others, and most of the donors have fascinating stories and are easy to talk to.

Of course, most of the donors he talks with know about him, too, and his own career trajectory.

Now, he’s dealing with more questions about Senator Organa than he ever has before.

Luckily, most of them are quick to sympathize with the Senator, and absolutely outraged at the conduct and views of her son. No one seems to put the blame at the Senator’s feet. Poe would not stand for the character of that woman being slandered, not after what she’s been through, what she’s fought for, her entire life.

But the questions are tough to field anyway, and his heart aches for her, and her entire staff, at what they’re going through. And his heart still hasn’t recovered from that night almost two weeks ago, where Rey had divulged bits of her own story to him. He lost his own mother when he was young, and there’s a part of him that can empathize with the parts of her that miss what she could have had. But the full extent of it, well, he can’t even imagine, couldn’t even _begin_ to imagine, what it would have been like to live without the safety, and security, and the _love_ , that his father and the rest of his huge, extended family gave him, and continued to give him, even to this day.

He can’t even begin to comprehend it. But he thinks that maybe he can give her a rock to lean on, some security and stability, in whatever form she could accept from him. Most nights since the news broke, after his phone calls have ended, he’ll head over to her place and stay with her late into the evening. He sits up with her while she crafts new messages to constituents, reviews the news, and keeps on working on her regular portfolio. He’ll heat up some food and they’ll eat together, and sometimes she’ll have to keep working, and some nights they find a little time to watch a movie, too exhausted, both physically and mentally, to do much else but cuddle, and they fall asleep on the couch, curled up around each other.

He knows he can’t fix her, can’t magically heal the lingering wounds of her childhood, or make the ongoing problems at Senator Organa’s office disappear which have dredged up these awful memories for her.

But maybe he can give her a sense of safety, and security, and love, both now and into the future.

She’s worth it, he knows. He’s more certain of that than he’s been of anything else in his life.

He glances over at his calendar, looking forward to the plans he and Rey have made for the 21st, for when the Christmas holiday officially begins at the end of this week. It’ll be a chance to leave the awfulness of the last few weeks behind, and revel in something magical and wondrous.

If he can lighten her spirit for even a few moments this holiday, then every second of planning, of working overtime to ensure that his own work wouldn’t interfere with his time off and their time together, would have been worth it.

\--

Rey glances down at her desk calendar, grinning once more to see the giant red circle around December 21. The Senator’s been back in Virginia for the week, doing events in her home state. Since the news of Ben Solo’s appearance at the white supremacist rally had broken, it’s been full speed ahead. Long days, long nights, the constant flow of meetings and emails and phone calls, all of it has been pushing her to the max.

Her bill has been postponed while the Senator deals with the fallout. They probably couldn’t get the votes for it right now, not with the current publicity attached to the Senator. Even Senator Ackbar, their supporter on the Armed Forces committee, had advised caution and restraint in proceeding with it now.

She’s hopeful that the winter holidays will give people the opportunity to reassess their anger towards Senator Organa, realize that she’s not to blame for her son’s actions.

He’s 30 years old, for God’s sake. It’s his decision. He should bear the full responsibility for it, not his mother who’s done nothing but fight for democracy and equality her whole career.

But once they get back from the break, maybe they can work on getting the bill passed.

But for now, she’s focused on something a little more immediate. Today’s the 21st, and she’s off – well, mostly off, she knows that she’ll probably have to do a little work – until January 2. Mrs. Holdo left at midday, and Rey can probably sneak out about 3:00 p.m. . . . it’s not like all the other staffers aren’t going do the same thing.

Other than tonight, she has little planned for the week and a half off, just sleeping, and eating, cuddling with Poe, maybe some – a lot – of making out. Maybe more if Poe could be persuaded.

It’s sweet that he wants to take his time with her, and he’s been so gentle and respectful towards her. But frankly, she’s practically aching for him at this point.  To be honest, she has been from the start. She’s never had such a strong, such a _good_ , connection before, never trusted someone so quickly with some of the most painful parts of her life. But now – now she wants to see where this can go. She hopes he’s ready, because she’s certainly ready for him.

At 3:00 p.m. exactly, she practically runs past Rose, throwing a wink in her direction as she scurries out of the office. Thirty minutes later, she’s texting Poe to tell him she’s arrived in the lobby of his office building. Moments later, the elevator doors open, and he walks out, wrapping that glaringly orange scarf around his neck as he walks up to her.

He leans in and kisses her cheek before pressing a quick kiss to her lips. She can’t resist following him for one more, and he grins as she presses her lips to his.  

“You ready to go?” He asks, holding his hand out to her.

With an enthusiastic nod, they head out the door. She’s always had mixed feelings about the holiday season – in one sense, she loves it, loves seeing everyone festive, all the decorations and light brightening up the darkness that seems to fall earlier each day. But she’s always felt like a bit of an outsider looking in at everyone else’s happiness. She’s celebrated the last few years with Finn, and they will again this year, sometime in the admittedly fewer days he gets off from his job, but now – now she has Poe, and they’re headed down to Georgetown to see all the decorations and eat dinner and maybe listen to some carolers along the way.

She can’t keep the smile off her face. She’s so happy, it feels like she could burst.

The feeling only grows as they stroll along the streets, arms interlocked, looking at the window dressings in the high-end shops, the decorations along the streets, the lights starting to twinkle and illuminate their path as the sun sets. She cuddles further into Poe’s side as the chill starts to seep through her heavy jacket and into her skin, but even the occasional shiver doesn’t dampen her enthusiasm.

But Poe notices her shivering anyway, rubbing his hand up and down her arm as if to ward off the increasing chill, and escorts her to a little Italian place that served the best lasagna and tiramisu that she’s ever eaten, and then lets her steal the last bite (or three bites, really) of his slice of cheesecake.

Even if it ends now, if he kisses her goodnight and they go their separate ways, she would easily catalog this as one of the most magical nights of her life. But the night continues, and Poe holds his arm out to her, and they take the trip down towards the White House, where the National Christmas Tree sits nearby. The whole way, she basks in the attention that Poe gives her, his smiles, his sweet words, his gazes with that fond look that she adores, and she can’t help but sneak kisses along the way.

They walk hand in hand towards the tree, its shining lights glimmering even from a distance. It’s beautiful, and she stands in awe of it, even as she moves closer to wrap her arms around Poe’s waist as she stands there. She lets out a little sigh as he returns the hug, and every painful memory of the last few weeks fades away, and instead she’s filled with so much love and happiness and warmth, that it makes her a little dizzy.

It almost feels absurd to her that one person can contain all the wonderful feelings that she’s experiencing right now.

She never wants it to end.

But soon enough the crowds around them begin to grow and press into them. She feels Poe drop a kiss into her hair, and they slip away.

Within the hour, they arrive back at Poe’s apartment, and after a short trip around the block to walk BB, she kicks off her boots in the entryway to his place, and tugs off her coat, laying it across the back of the couch where it’s joined a moment later by Poe’s coat and orange scarf. She hasn’t been to his apartment in the last week or so, and since then, a few storage boxes have been laid out in the living room, and a Christmas tree, artificial but still grander than any she’s ever seen in such close proximity, sits in the corner.

Poe comes up behind her, wrapping his arms around her while resting his chin on her shoulder, and his voice is soft as he speaks to her. “I usually have everything set up as soon as Thanksgiving ends. My parents did it that way every year, and my dad continued that even after – even when it was just me and him. And then, this year it just got so busy and then I was wondering if maybe – well, I was wondering, will you help me decorate it?”

A smile breaks across her face, even as she says, “I don’t know if I’ll be much help. I’ve never really decorated one before, and I’m not sure I know how to make it look nice.”

Poe presses a quick kiss to the side of her neck and then another to her cheek. “It doesn’t really matter how it looks. The important thing is that you’re here, with me, to decorate it.”

She grins. “Well, then. I’ll be happy to.”

“The tree decorations are in the big box on the left, if you want to start opening things up,” he says. He then putters off to the other side of the room, and within moments Christmas music fills the air and the scent of pine, balsam, and hollyberry hits her nose.

Poe comes dancing back in her direction, hips shimmying as he starts singing the opening notes of _Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree_. He approaches her with his hand held out, and when she takes it, he spins her around in a circle, pulling her in close after. She laughs as he dances them around his living room, and BB comes in to investigate the noise and then yaps happily as he jumps around their legs a few times, the open box of decorations laying forgotten for the moment.

As the song ends, and the voice of Bing Crosby fills the air, he releases her, both of them slightly out of breath. She helps him hang the lights around the tree, while BB soon grows bored of supervising their efforts, and proceeds to his bed in the corner for a nap. Rey rifles through his large stash of ornaments, handing him a few while hanging a few herself, all the while asking him questions about a few of the more personal decorations.

It’s not an elegant tree, not stylish or chic like they had seen adorning the shops and streets in Georgetown earlier, nor as grand as the ones they saw near the White House earlier. But when Poe hands her the tinsel, she laughs as they throw it on the tree, the bright and colorful strands of it standing out cheerfully among the other decorations.

With one last glance over the tree, Poe flicks the room’s lights off and moves to find the switch to turn on the tree’s lights.

“You ready?” He asks with a grin.

She nods, and within a moment, the twinkling multi-colored lights are illuminated, and she can’t help but gasp in pleasure.

He moves towards her, once more wrapping her in a hug, as they both gaze at the tree. It’s bright, and cheery, and _happy_ in a way that she can’t help but think reflects the personality of the man beside her in the best of ways.

He kisses her forehead once, before asking “You like it?”

“It’s completely perfect,” she whispers. “Thank you so much for letting me decorate it with you. This has been the best Christmas I’ve ever had.”

“It is perfect. This is the best Christmas I’ve ever had, too, now that you’re here,” he whispers back.

She strokes her hand along his cheek, relishing in the feeling of him leaning into it. Everything else about this evening has been so absolutely perfect, and while she’s never been overly sentimental, she wants to let him know how perfect this evening has been, how absolutely perfect he’s been, how wonderful it’s been since they met.

She can’t quite find the right words to describe that, though. But she’s suddenly hit with the desire to tell him something that she’s never told anyone else, something she hadn’t thought herself bold enough to tell him, even though the words have been whispering at the back of her mind recently.

When he turns his head slightly and presses a kiss to the palm of her hand, it slips out of her.

“I love you.”

Her voice is soft as she says it, but she knows he hears it, recognizes the moment it registers with him. His eyes widen, and for one brief moment, a shot of panic bolts through her stomach, that despite how certain she is in her love for him, that maybe he won’t say it back, maybe it was too soon or maybe he doesn’t feel the same way. But then he smiles, and his hands come up to cradle her face, and he leans in to rest his forehead against hers.

“I love you, too.” His voice is just as soft as hers was, and there is something undeniably happy in the way he gazes at her, his eyes crinkling at the corners while a soft smile plays at his lips.

He leans into her a bit more, just enough to close the space left between their lips, and everything is just as soft, and sweet, and intimate, so absolutely perfect, as everything else has been that night. The kiss is slow, and he takes his time, a hand moving into her hair as he deepens the kiss.

He breaks the kiss just long enough to get a breath of air, but even that moment is too long to be away from him, and she pulls him close once more. Their lips press together again, and she delights in the rumble that emanates from his throat as she runs her tongue against his bottom lip, and the only thought that crosses her mind in that moment is that she doesn’t want the night to end, not yet, not when she wants nothing more than to be as close to him as possible.

As perfect as this night has been, she’s still hoping for more. So, this time she breaks apart first, and leans up to whisper in his ear.

When he leans back in to continue the kiss, she marvels at how absolutely perfect this evening has been, and will continue to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the plan was to pick up the post-holiday action again in the next chapter, but then I wrote "A Holiday Interlude" which is basically a continuation of this chapter with them "celebrating" the Christmas holiday into the New Year with some explicit, adult fun. It's not necessary to the story, so would people even want to see it? Maybe I should post it in a separate story? Or maybe just make a note that the rest of the story is T, this next chapter will be E and that it could be skipped over if that's not someone's cup of tea? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
> 
> I'm gonna ask these questions over at my tumblr (starlight-and-seafire) later tonight, too, if anyone has any thoughts they want to contribute, but in a different setting.


	6. A Holiday Interlude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: this chapter is rated E (for sex only, there's no violence or anything else like that to cause the bumped up rating), although the rest of the story remains rated T.
> 
> If you don't want to read this chapter, that's perfectly okay, you won't miss any plot points really, and I'll give a brief summary of the non-smutty parts at the top of the next chapter.
> 
> If you are reading this chapter, I hope you enjoy Poe and Rey celebrating the holidays!

His kiss has robbed the air from her lungs, and she pulls back with a gasp, trying to catch her breath.

Poe continues, though, sweet and gentle as ever, but there’s something a little _more_ behind his kisses now, as he moves his lips to her jaw, then to the space under her ear and along the column of her throat. The kisses are leaving her knees weak, and she’s eager to continue this where she won’t have to worry as much about her legs giving out on her.

“Bedroom?” Her voice sounds breathy to her ears, but she’s not particularly bothered by it, not when Poe has found a spot on her neck that leaves her shivering.

She can feel him nod, his curly hair whispering against her skin, and that’s another delightful sensation, but he doesn’t move to lead them to the other room, just keeps alternating little sucking kisses and drags of teeth along that sensitive spot.

“Poe!” She gasps, a little higher this time, giggling when he makes a little pouty sound.

He leans up, his eyes studying hers, as he asks, “You sure about this?”

She smiles, full of affection for this sweet, caring man. “More sure than I’ve been about anything before. I want to be with you.”

Poe studies her face for a moment more, before bringing his hands up to cradle her face, giving her a brief kiss on her forehead and then her lips. It’s quick, but everything loving. “Me too. So very, very much. But you’ll tell me if you want to stop, at any point, right? Just say the word.”

His eyes are so serious that she can’t do anything but nod, and softly smile at him while saying, “Of course. And same for you, too.”

Poe grins at her and holds his hand out to her. She places her palm in his, and he leads them to his bedroom. She had seen it briefly on other visits, but never in this context, and it feels like she’s seeing it with new eyes. It’s neat in a way that speaks to his old military career, but still warm, still very Poe, as more than a few items in the room are the bright orange he clearly favors.

She steps towards him, pressing close to him once again, and strokes her hand along his neck and shoulder. She feels a slight tremor run through him, and she’s secretly pleased – comforted, really - that he seems to be a little nervous too, like she is right now, standing so close with so much more on the horizon. With his outgoing, charming demeanor, she thinks he’s probably had more than a little experience, where she’s only had a few encounters before, more fumbly and awkward back then instead of the passion that is flowing through her now.

But she trusts him, loves him, in a way that she’s never felt with anyone else before, too. The nerves can’t even begin to compare to that.

She presses her lips to his, this time, running a hand up until it entangles in his curls, already trying to create a better angle to deepen the kiss. She’s rewarded with a moan, and his mouth parts just enough that she can run her tongue along his.

His hands are working too, a hand stroking up and down her spine, while his other arm around her waist keeps trying to pull her closer, even though she thinks there isn’t any air left between them at this point. She’s a little disappointed to move her hands away from his plush curls already (and he is too, judging by the little groan he makes) but she’s suddenly hit with the immediate desire to feel his skin against hers, and brings her hands to the top button of his shirt.

He doesn’t make it easy, still trying to draw her closer while he’s sucking little kisses into her neck, even as she starts unbuttoning the shirt. The hand that had been stroking her back comes up, pets at her collarbone, moving her top a little out of the way so he can lave at her collarbone. His hand continues its path down, brushing against her breast, before making its way to the hem of her top, where he can press a hand beneath, and she gasps at the feel of his warm hand against her skin.

She’s more than a little distracted by his thumb stroking her skin and the nipping kisses on her collarbone, but she finally manages to push his shirt off his shoulders. When he lets go of her to finish shrugging out of it, she takes the opportunity to remove her own top. He seems to freeze, just for a moment, jaw agape, and she can’t help but feel a little proud to have caused that look to appear on his face.

“You look like you’ve never seen a half-naked woman before,” she teases.

He slowly blinks, once, then twice, before his eyes slowly travel up her body, causing a pleasurable heat to rush through her, before he meets her eyes once more. “I’ve never seen a half-naked _you_ before. You’re beautiful,” he says, before reaching to pull her close once more.

Her bra is still in the way, but the rest of their torsos are bare, and she revels in the feeling of their bare skin pressed together. He presses a few more kisses into her collarbone, even as he steadily walks them backwards to the bed. She knows it’s just behind her, is just about to pull out of his embrace long enough to lay down, but before she can he leans down and lifts her up, causing a giggle to burst out of her, even as he lays her gently down on the bed.

He joins her immediately, and she curls up into him again, their lips drawn together once more. His hand strokes at her back, then along her bra band, and she can’t help but whisper “Please” into his mouth. A moment later, he’s unhooked her bra, and it joins the growing pile of clothes on the floor next to the bed.

“You feel so good,” he says, pressing himself close to her, and she clutches at him and gasps as his tongue starts making its way down her throat.

“So do you,” she manages to gasp out, even as his tongue starts lapping delicately at a nipple, before his warm lips wrap around it, sucking gently.

Everything is warmth, and light, and passion, and the ache keeps on building inside of her as he presses his weight into her. Her hips seem to operate on instinct alone, and she starts grinding her hips up into his, eliciting a gasp from them both. It’s delicious, the press of their hips against each other, over and over, the friction causing her nerves to alight again and again.

She needs more, so she runs her hands down his torso until she meets the button at the top of his pants. He seems to be on the same page, moving away from where he’s been pressing kisses into her skin to help her push his pants down his legs. There’s even more bare skin before her gaze now, the tan skin stretching deliciously over his muscles as he situates himself next to her again. He grins and looks down, and her eyes follow his hand as it makes its way down her stomach. “Now you?”

She nods, fervently, eager to continue, eager to feel them completely bare and pressed together. He seems eager too, his tongue darting out to wet his lower lip as he unbuttons her pants. But the slow, teasing movements to pull her pants down her legs makes her grow impatient, and she wiggles, trying to urge him on, even as she groans out his name.

“Patience, sweetheart.” He gives her a teasing grin, before moving lower to kiss her calf muscle. His lips trail up one leg, and she can’t even pretend to be patient, not when each press of his lips against her skin threatens to light an inferno within her, building even higher when he continues the treatment on her other leg.

She feels his hands tracing against the elastic of her underwear, raises her head from where it’s been pressed back against the pillow, in order to look at him.

“May I?”

She nods, a quick movement accentuated with the “Please” that falls out of her mouth.

Moments later, she’s completely bare to him, and her back is arching as he parts her folds and licks into her. It’s slow at first, as he teases around the sensitive skin, but despite the brief, teasing licks, her pleasure is ramping up incredibly fast.

He must sense this, maybe in the way she writhes beneath him, her hips working to get more and more of him, and he draws a finger along her entrance and presses in gently.

She thinks it’s a tease really, even when he slips a second finger in to join the first, when she just wants him filling her, totally and completely. But she can’t focus on that thought, not really, not when he’s got his lips wrapped around her clit suckling gently at her, and she’s gasping for air and gasping his name, and suddenly it feels like she falls off the cliff at a million miles an hour, warmth and ecstasy filling her so completely.

She slowly comes back to awareness, her chest still heaving for breath even as her eyes remain closed. But she can feel his soft hair under her hand, and his lips still pressing kisses into her inner thighs, and she raises her head to look at him.

“What are you still doing down there?” She asks, her voice still hoarse from her moans.

He grins up at her, even as his fingers twitch a little where they remain inside of her, and asks, “Another?”

It’s tempting, but the thought of them joined so completely, so close together, is even more so, and she gently tugs at his hair, marveling at the way his eyelashes fluttered so prettily at that. “I want you up here.”

She gasps softly as his fingers slip out of her, and his body moves up along hers, until he’s hovering over her once more. She leans up to kiss him, and it’s a bit strange, the taste on his mouth, but it’s also fascinating, in the way that she senses both herself and Poe in the taste on his lips.

She quickly strokes her hands along his sides, feeling the smooth, warm skin under her palms, as she attempts to push his underwear down.  It’s a little difficult in their position, with him holding himself above her on his arms, and it takes a moment before he’s kicking them off, leaving them strewn on his floor.

“Wait, wait,” he urges, as she moves to pull him down against her. She’s briefly worried, until she sees him reaching into the nightstand and pulling out a condom. A moment later, he’s pulled it on, and he willingly goes when she pulls him down again, eager and excited, until his weight is on her again, nothing but bare skin between the both of them.

It feels glorious.

Her hips have started undulating again, brushing against his hard cock, and he moans into her ear, the sound causing a delightful shiver to run down her spine. But he’s so close now, so close to where she wants him to be, so she reaches down, eager to guide him exactly where she needs him.

Another moan hits her ears, this time deeper, throatier, as her hand wraps around the warm skin, palpable even through the condom, and she can’t resist dragging her hand up and down him, once, then twice, just to have another sweet moan fall from his lips and into her ear.

He presses a palm to her cheek, urging her to meet his eyes, those sweet, kind eyes, even now, even as they’re filled with fire and passion. She lines him up with her center, and his hips move forward, pressing into her gently, and they both moan as he begins to fill her.

“Slowly,” she urges him, recognizing it’s been a little while for her, although he seems to need no reminder, considering how gentle he’s been with her all along. But he heeds her words, anyway, and the sweet friction is almost teasing as he slowly enters her.

It’s heady, the feeling of being filled even as his eyes remain on hers, as if he could fill her mind and soul even as he fills her body. She groans in pleasure as he bottoms out, and his lips meet hers quickly, the sweet pressure of his lips and tongue continuing to build heat even as she adjusts around him.

Within moments, the soreness of the stretch fades away, and she whispers into his mouth, “Move, please.”

His gaze is intense as he looks down at her, all fire and lust, even as he takes his time rocking his hips against her. She’s quickly getting overwhelmed with the look in his eyes, the feel of him inside of her, and soon, the feel of his fingers against her, as he moves his hand between their bodies to stroke at her.

She can barely form words, can only gasp out his name between moans, and he seems as lost in pleasure as she is. He’s still stroking away inside of her, and she wraps her legs around him, pulling him as close as possible while still trying to work her own hips against his.

He’s got his lips against her neck once more, even while her hand is scrabbling for purchase in his hair, against his shoulder, and with a particularly delightful stroke of his hips, she clenches around him, pleasure ramping up her spine until it feels like its exploding along all her nerve endings.

She can hear his grunts and groans as he presses himself inside of her, milking her orgasm for all its worth, even as he chases his own. She continues rocking her hips, as much as possible considering how almost delirious with pleasure she feels.

She leans up, presses kisses into his shoulder as he continues rocking his hips, runs her nails against his shoulders and back until she knows he’s about to fall off the same cliff. He has his face tucked against her neck now, and when she whispers, “I love you,” into his hair, he groans, loudly, his body shuddering as his own climax hits him, until he falls still.

He keeps his face tucked into her neck, gasping for breath, even as he hovers over her still, his arms keeping the entirety of his weight off of her.

She strokes her hand up and down his back as his breathing calms down. Finally, he lifts his head, his features awash in joy as he looks at her, once more bringing his hand to her cheek, stroking his thumb along her skin.

“Sweetheart,” he says, and there’s something almost giddy in that word, something so full of affection, that it makes her head swim. But then he leans down, brushes his lips against hers, whispers “my love,” and she swears she’s never felt such happiness before.

Even when he whispers an apology as he pulls out of her, her face screwing up a little at the over-sensitized drag of it, and he moves to throw the condom away, she still feels like she’s glowing. As he tucks himself around her again, both of them squirming a little to find the most comfortable position, not settling until arms and legs are strewn over the other again, she can’t help but think that she was right, this night was as completely perfect as she could have ever imagined it to be.

She presses a lingering kiss to his collarbone, whispers “my love” into his skin, feels him pull her a little tighter against him in response.

For the first time in her life, she’s eager to see what else this holiday has in store for her, and she dozes off, feeling warm and in love.

 --

“I think we might actually get a white Christmas!”

Poe looks up from where he’s sitting in bed, laptop propped on his knees as he types a quick message.

He was about to reply, maybe say something about how it’s possible, maybe the weather forecasters are wrong and maybe the sky will break open and soft flakes of snow might fall from the sky, just in time for Christmas Eve –

But he gets a little distracted. And his mouth has suddenly become terribly dry.

Cause while Rey’s standing at the window, face pressed to the glass and head tilted to the sky, an eager expression on her face, he’s a little distracted by what she’s wearing.

Namely, his George Washington University alumni shirt. He’s not a particularly big man, not particularly tall, but she’s incredibly slender, and the shirt hangs down in a way that seems as if it’s caressing her body.

Plus, he knows she’s not wearing anything else, nothing except that shirt and that little pair of boy shorts that peek out at the bottom.

He’s never been a particularly possessive man, but there’s something in the fact that she’s pretty much only wearing his shirt that gets him going. He sets his laptop off to the side, before getting out of bed and sidling up behind her, where she’s still gazing out the window.

He wraps his arms around her waist, feels her lean back into his embrace as he starts pressing a few slow, careful kisses into her neck. It’s unbelievable to him that he can still want her so much – no, _need_ , need feels like the proper word, this yearning that pulls him to her. Since that first night, it feels like they’ve barely separated from each other. That first evening, she woke him in the dead of the night, and sleep faded quickly as they were drawn together once more. The next morning, he made her breakfast, and once they had finished eating, he was desperate to see if she was as syrupy sweet as the pancakes she had ate.

They had separated from each other long enough to eat, and walk BB, and to handle a little work. But even when they were watching the Sunday morning news show, they were wrapped up around each other on the couch, cuddled together underneath the coziest blanket he had.

It’s probably the best vacation he’s ever had.

He hopes it’s hers, too.

He can’t help but nuzzle her throat with his nose until she giggles, his name escaping her lips on a whine, even as she tips her head to the side to give him a better angle.

“Sweetheart,” he teases back, before pressing a kiss to her pulse.

He grins as her voice comes out breathier than it was just a moment ago. “We’re gonna be late.”

“I promise we’ll get there in plenty of time.”

Rey makes a noise of indecision, even as she continues gazing out the window, her hand still stroking along his forearm wrapped around her waist.

He can see their reflection in the window, and when she meets his eyes in the glass, he can’t resist grinning at her and saying, “Besides, I hear Finn got in just this morning. I bet they’re taking advantage of all the alone time they can get, too.”

“Poe!”

He laughs at the playful indignation on her face, the look only growing stronger when he says, “We still need to shower before we head over. So really, this is the perfect time to get dirty.”

She twists slightly in his arms, just enough to meet his gaze full on, and rolls her eyes at him, even if it’s tempered by the grin on her face.

It’s not his fault if his gaze is drawn down to that grin. He’s grown very fond of those lips, and he can’t resist leaning in to show his appreciation. It’s slow and sweet at first, a soft brush of lips, but he can’t resist making it a little deeper to find the taste of her.

Rey seems to approve, groaning into the kiss, an arm reaching over until her hand can find its way into his hair. When she breaks the kiss, her eyes search his.

Poe kisses her cheek, preparing to release her. “Alright, if you want, we can start getting ready.”

Rey sighs, an exaggerated, dramatic sound, before a wicked grin pulls at her lips. “Well, I guess we could save time by sharing the shower.” She pulls away, and the last thing he sees before she enters his bathroom is her bare back as she pulls his shirt over her head.

\--

“No shop talk at the table!”

“I’m just saying!”

“Finn!” Rose exclaims, as the rest of them groan simultaneously in mock exasperation.

“I’m just saying that people will turn back around and support her once again. I believe in it – I believe in her! And I have faith that people will realize that she’s not to blame, and remember how much good she’s done, and will re-elect her.”

“Hear, hear!” Poe cheers, raising his glass in celebration. He had only met Finn that night, after hearing stories from Rey and Paige, but he has absolute faith in that what Finn says will come to pass. There’s a certain charisma, earnest and forthright, in that man, and Poe had instantly liked him.

He’s sure that the voters that Finn has been canvassing in Virginia will sense that, too. And hopefully, Finn can swing that back into support for the Senator.

Actually, Poe thinks, he’s sure that Finn will be able to do that. There’s something about that man that makes him immediately believe in him, feels like he could trust him with his life. Poe clinks glasses with Finn, and grins.

“Anyway, I’m just saying -” and everyone at the table playfully shouts again when Finn speaks. He holds his hands up in emphasis, “I’m just saying, if we don’t talk shop, what are we gonna talk about instead?”

Rose holds up a finger, clearly about to protest, but she quickly puts her finger down, her mouth closing with an audible snap. A quick glance around shows that no one else is coming up with any ideas, either.

“See? See! We’re all political nerds and news junkies here. Even me, now, even though I said years ago – Rey, stop laughing – even though I said I would never be one of you, someone like Rey or Rose, always in the fray, fighting the good fight. Said I would never enter politics, and now here I am. But we’re all political nerds here, so tell me, if we don’t talk shop, what are we going to talk about instead?”

The rest of the table is cracking up, laughing loudly as Finn goes into his monologue. But he’s right, Poe thinks, you can never get a roomful of true believers together and not talk politics. The fight is in their blood.

It’s not to say that the dinner was entirely about the news, the Senate, and the re-election effort. No, Finn had told an amusing story that had the table cracking up, about Rey trying to bake a birthday cake for him (“It was a lovely thought, but it was inedible. I thought it would kill me!” Finn cries), and Paige had recounted how she and Poe literally met when the both of them had been running late to a veteran’s event on Capitol Hill and had collided into each other sprinting towards the room. And then there was a surprisingly intense debate concerning the best holiday movies of all time (“What? It’s a Wonderful Life is _clearly_ a better Christmas movie than _Die Hard_!” which was immediately followed by Rose’s loud cry of “Now, _those_ are fighting words!”).

But now, nothing but cookie and pie crumbs remain on their plates, half empty wine glasses sitting nearby. It was a lovely evening, the best sort of kind you can have with close friends, and it seems like usual the conversation has turned back to politics.

Well, until Rey gasps loudly, and everyone follows the direction she’s looking.

“It’s snowing!” She shouts gleefully, her chair pushing back with a screech as she gets up and runs towards the window.

She’s right, all of them watching as big white snowflakes stream past the window, everyone quickly getting up from the table to join her at the window. Finn stands at Rey’s side, and Poe is amused at the silent exchange that happens between the two of them, all sideways glances and quirks of eyebrows.

“C’mon, Peanut,” Finn says, and Poe sees her eyes widen in glee, and she practically sprints for the door.

Rose raises her voice at their retreating backs. “Wait! Jackets! Gloves!”

Their sudden halt to find their outerwear is almost comical, even if everyone else follows quickly after them.

There isn’t enough snow on the ground quite yet to form a snowman, or even have a proper snowball fight (though Rey, clever girl, realized there was enough to scoop up along car hoods to form just enough to send down the back of his shirt, and _oh, revenge will be mine_ , he thinks, as he chases after her, her gleeful laughter leading the way). But there’s something sweet, and lovely, playing in the snow with good friends, feeling like a kid again, all the stress and worries left far behind.

And then he sees Rey’s sweet smile, her cheeks flushed from the cold and exertion, laughter falling from her lips while the snow falls around her –

He thinks all the magic and wonder of the season can’t even begin to compare to her.

\--

Rey sprawls on one end of the couch, her feet propped comfortably in Poe’s lap. The Christmas tree is still lit nearby, and they’re flipping through the various New Year’s Eve celebrations being broadcast on the television, too warm and cozy to even think about going out bar hopping in the snow storm visible outside their window.

She’s absentmindedly stroking her hand over her stomach, feeling the fabric of the softest, warmest sweater she’s ever worn, when she feels Poe squeeze her foot.

“So, you really like it, then?”

“I’ve worn it for most of this last week, so I would say so, yeah.” It’s an almost ridiculous question at this point, so she can’t help but tease him a little, poking him in the side with her toe. He laughs, and settles her feet back into his lap, stroking his hand along her calf and foot once more, a rhythmic, soothing pattern, that along with the wind outside and the background noise from the TV, pretty much has her melting into the couch in relaxation.

The sweater was a Christmas gift from Poe. She knows that such a practical gift might seem strange to others, particularly those in relatively new relationships, but it warmed a spot deep in her anyway. They had passed it one time in a shop, and he must have seen her ogling it. It was beautiful, a soft green, and she had pretty much fallen in love with it at first sight, but it was too far outside her budget to even consider buying it. But since she unwrapped it Christmas morning, she’s enjoyed wearing it immensely, particularly while digging deep into a bag of assorted candy and chocolate that he given her to satisfy her rather immense sweet tooth.

He seems to have enjoyed her gifts as well. His favorite seems to have been the variety of hot sauces to add to his already impressive collection, and he’s already sampled many of them, adding vast amounts to his dishes while she looks on in mild horror (her taste buds are clearly not a fan of too much heat).

He squeezes her calf once, before stroking his hand back down her leg. He’s doing it absentmindedly while watching the television, and she takes the opportunity to study him. They’re both dressed down, having opted to stay in for most of the holiday break, and he’s wearing a loose pair of sweatpants and a soft shirt that still manage to show off his strong thighs and broad shoulders. The stubble on his jaw is thick, but still on the right edge of pleasurable when she feels it on her skin. And then there’s the loose curls, which are more wild than usual, not tamed down into his usual work style, and soft and thick enough to sink her fingers into.

She can’t stop the squirm as she presses her thighs together. When he turns to her, the movement having caught his attention, she can’t resist biting her lip, hoping that the look she gives him is seductive.

It seems to work, as his hand stalls on her leg, his gaze stopping first at her eyes, before traveling to her lips, where he seems transfixed by the sight of her lip caught between her teeth.

She barely has to reach out for him, before he moves around enough to lay on the couch next to her, his hand cradling her jaw, his thumb tracing her lower lip. “Don’t you know that’s my job,” he says, eyes still trained on her lip, before he moves in for a kiss.

It starts slow, as he sucks on her bottom lip for a moment, before moving slightly for a better angle. Within moments, though, her tongue is stroking his, the warm taste of the hot cocoa they had drank earlier still lingering in his mouth, and her hands are pulling at his shoulders to draw his body closer to hers.

He starts moving down her neck, pressing short, firm kisses along the column of her throat. “You always have the best ideas,” he says, and it’s enough of a non-sequitur that she’s momentarily confused.

“This is much better than watching,” he trails off, turning his head and squinting at the television, “Anderson Cooper.”

She laughs, even as she presses a palm to his cheek, turning his head back to her and urging him back to her neck. The last thing she sees is his teasing grin as he ducks back in, pressing a long, sucking kiss right below her ear that has her gasping.

It’s easy enough to work his shirt off, and he manages to kick his pants off with only a little trouble. However, as happy as she is running her hands along his back and grabbing a palmful of his ass, earning a quick jerk of his hips where she wants friction the most, she wants more _now_.

“I have to say, I feel a little underdressed here,” he says, running a hand under her sweater and over her stomach.

She grins, even as she leans up, pressing a kiss to his collarbone before running her tongue along his neck, causing him to gasp into her ear. “I don’t know, I kinda like this look on you.”

“Mmm, I’m fine with it. I’m just saying I would be happier with a little less clothing on you,” he says with a wicked grin, leaning back down to meet her mouth once more. She’s got a hand in his hair again, while his hand has worked itself further under her top, palming a breast in his hand. She can’t help but wrap her legs around his waist as his thumb rubs back and forth over a nipple, and the sensation of it has her working her hips against his, even as she tugs her sweater completely off.

“Pants . . . off,” she manages to gasp out, and he breaks their kiss to slide down, and she whines when his hands move away from her breasts.

It’s quickly replaced with a gasp, however, as his warm mouth envelopes one nipple, and a moment later his hands push her pants and underwear down her hips. He kneels up quickly, pulling her legs up to remove her pants completely, and with the full view of his body in front of her, she practically feels herself drown in her desire for him.

He pushes his own underwear off, even as she’s grabbing for his shoulders, eager to have him close once more. They gasp in unison, the feeling of all their bare skin pressed together still as amazing as it had been the first time they had been together.

Poe’s pressing kisses to her chest, even as one hand runs up her inner thigh, until a finger is running through her folds.

“Christ, you’re so wet,” he practically moans, already starting to move lower.

Although she’s always a fan of his ridiculously skilled mouth, she wants to feel him filling her, preferably sooner rather than later. She grabs at his shoulder, trying to tug him up. “Please, Poe, I’m ready. I want you, now.”

She feels him pause, and he glances up at her from where he was kissing her stomach. “I could get you ready a little more . . .”

“I’m ready. I want you inside me. Now.”

She’s never really been proficient at dirty talk, neither had the time nor inclination to try it before. And she’s not really aiming to do so now, but this is probably the closest she’s come to it yet with Poe.

But even so, she really enjoys the way Poe’s eyes seem to darken, before he leans over to dig through their discarded clothing to find a condom. Once his task is complete, he surges up to press quick, heated kisses along her neck, before finally taking her lips in his, a tongue eagerly pressing its way inside for a deep, passionate kiss.

She feels her head spinning even as he pulls back and asks, “You sure?”

She wraps her legs around his waist once more, pulling him in close until his hard length is pressing against her. “Yes. Please, now.”

His hand skims down between them, and barely a moment later, he’s pressing inside her, and she groans as he fills her completely. He stays still for a moment, giving her a moment to adjust, but when she starts pressing her hips up, he begins to move.

At first, it’s slow, deep thrusts that leave her groaning beneath him, but just like the rest of the night, it builds quickly, until she’s gasping for more.

He moves until he’s kneeling between her legs, pulling her hips up until she’s resting partially on his thighs, only her upper back and head remaining on the couch. It gives her an amazing view of the full length of him, so much tan skin glistening with sweat on display for her, and he seems to appreciate his view, as well, biting his lip as he gazes down at her with heavy lidded eyes.

His thrusts are short but hard, spurred on by her moans as the new angle hits a delicious place inside of her.

She watches him watching her, his gaze sliding slowly down her body until it rests on the place they’re joined, and she can’t but look too, feeling a shot of lust crash through her as she watches him enter her over and over again.

“You feel so good,” he gasps out. “Please, touch yourself.”

His hands are still grasping her hips, tugging her onto him as he keeps working his own hips, and she can’t resist his command, sliding a hand down her stomach until her fingers rest on her clit. They groan in unison as she begins rubbing, working herself higher and higher under his heated gaze.

Something like a growl rips through his chest as he watches, and he tips forward once more, propping himself on one arm as his other hand goes to grip the arm rest of the couch to give himself more power.

His hot, heavy-lidded gaze, the way his tongue swipes across his bottom lip as he looks at her hungrily, the power of his hips thrusting against hers, and her hand trapped between them, still working herself, sends her crashing over the edge, practically shrieking as her orgasm rips through her.

Poe works her through it, until her climax winds down and she feels almost boneless, and moments later, Poe tucks his face into her neck and gasps, and she feels Poe shuddering as his own orgasm hits.

A minute later, she hears a muffled “Holy crap,” and she’s already feeling almost giddy so she can’t help but giggle, and a moment later, both are laughing.

Even when the laughter dies down, they remain wrapped up in each other, her hand stroking along his back as he keeps his face pressed against her chest. Something from the television must catch his attention, as he turns to look, and she follows his gaze.

It’s minutes to midnight, and the crowd on television is getting excited.

Within moments, he’s discarded the condom and pulled on a pair of boxers. He grabs a blanket, holding it up to wrap around her as she steps up to him. He uses the edges to pull her close, pressing a kiss to her nose then her mouth.

“I got champagne,” he says, walking quickly to the kitchen to grab the glasses, and she grins as he comes back with the bubbling drink, even if she has to squirm a hand out between the blanket to hold her glass.

The announcers on the TV are counting down the last minute, and Poe turns up the volume even as he wraps an arm around her waist, pulling her close to him. BB wanders in from where he had been napping in Poe’s room, his attention grabbed by the sudden hubbub in the apartment.

She’s never been excited for a New Year before, never understood the hoopla, especially as a kid when she expected nothing would ever change, anyway.

But now she’s seen how much life could change, in such wonderful ways, and she’s excited to see what a new year with Poe would be like.

In the last ten seconds, she can’t help but feel awe at where she is now, at the love she has found, the friends in her life, despite the many strange, winding paths her life has taken.

As the clock strikes midnight, they both cheer “Happy New Year,” BB letting out a little woof as if he was joining in, and Poe leans down, leaving a sweet kiss on her lips, before whispering a soft “I love you” into her mouth.

For the first time in her life, she’s excited for what a new year might bring her.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And after the last chapter, "A Holiday Interlude," we are back to your regularly scheduled story. As noted in the last chapter (which was explicit), the rest of the story, including this chapter, is rated T.
> 
> There were no real plot points in the last chapter. As promised, though, a brief summary: Poe and Rey celebrated Christmas, and had a great time. Rey got really excited at the potential for a white Christmas, while Poe was mostly really excited at seeing Rey in his George Washington University alumni t-shirt. After this, Poe and Rey join Rose and Finn for Christmas dinner. This was the first time Poe and Finn met, but Poe likes him immediately. Then, much to Rey's (and everyone else's) excitement, it starts snowing, and everyone has a lot of fun playing in the snow. Then the chapter ends with Poe and Rey celebrating New Year's, and they had a really great time, and Rey is really excited for what the new year might bring.
> 
> Now on with the story!

Poe pulls off the microphone clipped to the lapel of his jacket, handing it over to the television producer who comes to collect it from him. With a mumbled thanks, he stands, loosens his tie, and runs his hand through his hair.

He hates these sorts of interviews. It always feels like some sort of test. He worries that he’ll accidentally say the wrong thing, although he knows he usually does well in these sorts of situations and is a pretty good public speaker. But he’s at his best when he’s connecting with people one on one or in small groups. Here, it just feels so impersonal, sitting in some local news studio while talking to an anchor who might be halfway across the country.

He just doesn’t trust his skill at connecting with an impersonal camera while sitting under hot studio lights, feeling the pressure to not misspeak, not when it’s something as important as standing up for his old boss, one of the most impressive people he’s ever met.

There’s only ever been three people he’s wanted to emulate in his life: his parents, Kes Dameron and Shara Bey, and Leia Organa. He thinks if he can make them proud, maybe even do a halfway decent job of filling their impressive shoes, then he’ll have lived a good life.

He collects his belongings and steps out of the studio, hitching up his jacket collar to ward off the winter chill as he makes his way to his metro stop.

His fingers fly over the keyboard as he sends his first text, to let Kaydel Connix, the Senator’s communications director, know the interview concluded and that there weren’t any surprises. Then again, knowing her, she was probably watching live. As was the campaign’s communications director, probably. With the turn of the calendar into the new year, the Senator’s re-election campaign was heating up.

Eleven months. From a certain point of view, eleven months seemed like a long time, but Poe remembers helping out on one of Senator Organa’s re-election campaigns. 

Eleven months can fly by while running a campaign.

The second text is to Rey. His fingers had just started typing his message, when he sees a new text from her pop up.

_You did awesome!_

Poe grins. _Thanks, sweetheart. I didn’t horribly mangle some fact or anything, did I?_

_Not at all! We were all watching at the office. The anchor was pretty awful at the beginning when she was trying to insinuate that the Senator and Solo were somehow responsible for their son’s views, but you shut that down real quick. You got a lot of cheers here._

Poe recalls the anchor’s lead in to the interview, the question that if Ben Solo could support these people, that if he could rise in their ranks so quickly, then surely he must have been supported by his parents. And if he could honestly hold those views, does that mean his parents did so too . . . Poe shakes his head, angered once more on the Senator’s behalf. _Still can’t believe anyone could think that of her,_ he replies. _Is she back in the office?_

Rey messages back quickly. _She’s doing some townhalls across Virginia. Her challenger put out some mailers recently and seems to have gotten a bit of a bump in the polls, so I think the campaign is doing damage control right now. Should be back in DC next week. Holdo is suggesting she’s going to start trying to bring the foster bill back to the forefront._

Poe’s made it to his metro stop and settles into his seat, pausing briefly before sending a text back. He had seen the polls on the news during the holiday, in those brief moments when he wasn’t wrapped up in Rey (and he smiles, even now, at the memories), both of them trying to cram as much of their necessary work into as few minutes as possible so that they could return to each other as soon as possible. During one particularly memorable point, they were both in bed with nothing but sheets and blankets covering them, shoulders and legs brushing the others, while some news show played on the TV as they responded to emails that couldn’t wait.

But now, some relative unknown was suddenly making waves in the Virginia senate race, somehow raising tons of money online despite relatively little name recognition. According to prior financial reports, he hadn’t exactly raised a lot of money before then.

Poe couldn’t comprehend that that many people would suddenly stop supporting the Senator and start supporting her conservative opponent, and toss him all their money, too.

Something seemed weird about that, for sure.

Poe returns to his text message, typing _I hope the bill gets back on track soon. It’s important, and you’ve done a lot of good work on it. It deserves a vote._ Poe knows how much that bill means to her, and honestly hopes for both her sake, as well as for the all the children in the foster care system, that the bill gets passed sooner rather than later. He hates that this scandal has pushed it to the side even for a moment.

He grins when he sees the multiple smiley face and heart emojis she’s sent in response. Honestly, he was a bit surprised the first time he received a message like that, as Rey never struck him as someone who would use too many emojis in texts. But according to her, ever since she and Rose had started texting, Rose had used a lot of emojis, and Rey might have gone a little . . . over the top, in response.

When Rey tries something, she certainly goes all the way.

Poe replies with more than a few heart and kissy faces emojis of his own. No one’s ever accused him of being too serious . . . or not rising to the emoji challenge when it’s placed before him.

 _Almost back to the office_ , he texts as a follow-up.

Rey’s response is immediate. _I’ll see you later?_

_You know it._

\--

Rey drops a sandwich onto Rose’s desk as she sits down across from her with her own lunch. Since Finn had taken on the role of Field Director in the Senator’s campaign, he’s been on the road throughout Virginia most of the time, and Rey knows Rose is missing him.

“Heard from Finn today?”

Rose nods, as she opens the wrapper on her sandwich. “Yeah, he texted from the road. There’s a rally tonight, so he’s headed there to make sure things get set up correctly. I think the Senator left a few minutes ago to fly out there.”

Rey nods, used to the Senator being in and out of the office recently. Now well into the New Year, and with the weather starting to warm up as spring time nears, the Senator – and about a third of the Senate, really – are spending more and more time on the road campaigning for re-election.

The campaign team is in place and growing by the day. Finn, who had worked as a field organizer on a number of candidate and issue campaigns, had been installed as the Senator’s field director. He was charming, charismatic, and smart and capable in all the best ways to run a strong ground game, and his leadership skills were bringing in new field operatives and tons of volunteers.

But of course, a campaign can be a lonely business, particularly for the people left behind.

“Some days I wonder if he’s really that busy, or if he’s just doing this to avoid our rematch at laser tag,” Rey says, teasingly shaking her head as if she was disappointed in Finn.

Rose laughs. “I’ve never seen anyone so happy that you beat them, but at the same time, he’s still gunning for you.”

They return to their sandwiches, and Rey watches Rose’s expression change as she ponders something that is clearly weighing on her. “I just wish I could be there for him, you know?” Rose quickly glances around before lowering her voice. “He tells me they’re really stressed out over there. The fundraising numbers the other guy is pulling in all of a sudden are just way too much. It barely makes sense! The news has died down, and the Senator’s poll numbers have bounced back, but all these random people are now donating to that guy’s campaign in huge waves? Like what the hell is going on?”

Rey reaches over to pat Rose’s arm. Rey knows she’s never quite gotten out of that awkward phase with physical contact, even with her good friends, not after going without it for so long. Rose notices, because Rose always seems to notice everything about her friends. But Rose just gives her a grateful look in return, so Rey doesn’t feel bad about her awkwardness. It seems it was the thought that counted, anyway.

They both grow quiet then. Rey can’t help mulling over what Rose told her, the other bits and pieces of information she’s been hearing about the campaign. That some relative newcomer, otherwise unknown, has been pulling in big fundraising numbers is a worrisome sign. It looks like the next several months will be a hard fight.

At the same time, her heart aches for Rose and Finn. She can’t imagine being separated from Poe for as long as those two will be, can’t even begin to fathom the toll it would take on her. She knows she has abandonment issues, an issue she has slowly been working on with the help of a therapist, but even for the hardiest individuals, a campaign can be a long, hard slog. She doesn’t envy anyone involved in one. It can take you away from loved ones for days, weeks, even months on end, and the stress could wear even the strongest individuals down. She resolves to try to spend more time with Rose over the next couple months. Hopefully she might be able to ease things for Rose, even a little.

\--

She’s never been this nervous before.

She’s sitting in the galley above the Senate floor, watching as senator’s prepare to vote on her bill. After months of work - only to see it shelved during the height of the scandal - it’s finally been brought to a vote.

Sure, it had taken months longer than expected, but now, in mid-April, it’s on the Senate floor. Senator Ackbar had provided the last strong push to get the vote scheduled with enough people in support, and she’s more grateful to him than she could ever say.

A few days ago, it had passed in the House, and now it’s here, and she’s so, so nervous. And she knows they have the votes, her spreadsheets have made that clear for the last two weeks when the last votes were whipped into place, but . . .

She can’t help but imagine all the ways that things could go south. That maybe something would cause some aye votes to flip. They were five votes ahead when they scheduled the vote, and they were five votes ahead as of this morning, but things could go wrong.

She likes to think she’s a hopeful person. But growing up like she had . . . well, she knows that sometimes the worst will come for you, whether you expect it or not.

She’s contemplating just how they might come back from a lost vote, what they could do to change it up to ensure that it would pass, when she feels a hand clap her shoulder. She manages to control her flinch at the unexpected contact, but then she realizes that the folks surrounding her are cheering. Somehow, while she had been considering what to do in the event the bill failed, the last senators had voted, and the bill passed 56-44.

Somewhere, in the midst of the hugs and handshakes and congratulations that makes its way around the section of the galley occupied by Rey, a few other members of Senator Organa and Senator Ackbar’s staffs, and a few of the leaders from various foster care organizations, she briefly wonders who that unexpected 56th vote was. But the thought lapses quickly, as she’s swept up in a whirlwind of emotion. She’s thrilled that the vote passed, a little sad that it had taken so long, and it feels more than a little bittersweet, as she can’t help but think of the child she once was, before she had found a safe place with her last guardian, Ben Kenobi, and all the children that she had met going through foster care at the same time as she did.

She hopes that they are all okay, that they are all doing well. She knows the struggle that many of them went through.

Maybe this will be a step toward making it right.

The group makes its way into the hall, and slowly they start to drift off, one by one, to their next task. She’s one of the last, had just said goodbye to someone on Senator Ackbar’s staff, when she feels a tap on her shoulder.

She turns and is greeted with the face of Fiona James, the head of the largest foster care organization, and key supporter of the bill. Rey’s known her about a year now, through phone calls and a few in person meetings. There’s not many outside of her close friends and the Senator who know of her history in foster care, but Ms. James does, and through that, they had found a connection, a common purpose that had grown into a fruitful working relationship.

The woman reaches a hand forward. “Congratulations, Ms. Kenobi. You did it.”

Rey tries to tamp down her grin, even though she feels fairly bursting with pride. “I wouldn’t say I did it. It’s the Senator’s bill and I was only one of many that helped.”

“I’m sure that’s true. But Senator Organa herself made it very clear that you spearheaded this and are the very reason it passed today. And even if she hadn’t, it’s very clear to me that it wouldn’t have come to pass without your leadership.”

Rey feels warmth rise to her cheeks, partly at the compliment from the woman in front of her, but mostly at the idea that Senator Organa thought so highly of her and the work she had done on this bill.

Rey can’t quite think of how to respond, but she’s saved from her uncertainty when Fiona asks, “You have a moment?”

“Sure,” Rey responds.

Fiona glances around quickly, before gesturing for Rey to follow her. It’s only a few steps away, but now they’re partially hidden away in a little alcove.

In their dark little corner, away from prying eyes and ears, she feels her heart rate spike as Fiona James speaks to her. She wasn’t expecting the information, certainly not now, not after the vote, not from the leader of this particular organization. But, with one final handshake and a promise to pass on the information, she scurries off, eyes wide and slightly breathless as she makes straight for the office.

\--

Rey fishes in her bag for her keys, digging past her wallet and other necessities, past briefing memos and more sticky notes than she’d care to admit. She’s exhausted, both mentally and physically, and just wants to collapse on the couch with some junk food and watch some bad television.

That’s why it takes her a second to realize there are balloons and flowers sitting on the counter, the smell of pizza wafts through the air, and the television is broadcasting CNN while her boyfriend is snoring away on the couch.

Even as tired as she is, she can’t help but smile. She slips off her shoes just inside her front door and tiptoes her way to the couch. She tries to gently ease down beside Poe, hoping not to disturb him, but he awakens anyway.

“Congratulations,” he says, voice raspy and eyes bleary as she snuggles up to him. He brushes a kiss on her forehead, and she can’t help but sigh as she gets comfortable against his chest. “I thought you might be home earlier, so I brought pizza and cake over.”

“You brought cake?”

He chuckles. “Yep. A whole one too, not just a slice. Yellow cake, with lots of chocolate frosting.”

She groans a little, as part of her is already very comfortable and doesn’t want to move, while another part (including her currently growling stomach) craves the pizza and cake. “That sounds so good, but I don’t wanna move.”

“The pizza is pepperoni,” he says, laughing as she groans louder at his words. He pats a hand against her hip and moves to get up. “Stay here, I got ya.”

“You don’t have to, I can get it,” she says, even though she makes no effort to move.

“Nah, you deserve to celebrate. Stay there, change the channel. Two or three slices to start?”

She cranes her neck to look at him where he’s standing in the kitchen opening the pizza box, and just raises her eyebrow.

“Three, got it.” Poe brings back two plates, and moves to join her on the couch, where she’s already pulled up some bad reality television dating show.

She takes the plate from him, cradling it in her lap, while he gets comfortable and starts eating. However, she’s distracted, still focused on the conversation following the vote with Fiona James, and the meeting minutes later with Mrs. Holdo and the Senator.

Poe notices her distraction, swallowing his bite of pizza before asking, “You okay?”

“Just thinking,” she says, slowly. Her mind is still turning over the new information, and she wonders . . .

“Did something come up after the vote? I figured you’d be late getting home because you’d be celebrating at the office, but I kinda figure you’d be happier if that was the case. Something seems to be eating at you.”

His hand reaches out to rest atop hers, giving her fingers a gentle squeeze, and she looks at him, seeing concern shining through on his face.

“I don’t know if you want to talk about it, but I’m here if you want to,” he says, softly.

Right after speaking with Fiona James, she had rushed back to the office. Within minutes she was recounting the information passed along to her, desperately trying to recall the minute details of the conversation. The Senator would first have to decide whether to even pass the information along to the opposition researchers on her campaign staff, but if she did so, Rey wanted her – and her campaign staff – to have as much information as possible.

She sighs, trying to release some of the stress building up in her stomach, and flips her hand over and intertwines their fingers. She figures he doesn’t need to know everything, the expansive network of individuals Fiona James had laid out for her, the little pieces of information that had led Fiona to connect the dots, but she’s sure she could tell him the gist of it, anyway.

“The Senator’s challenger is being helped by a man named Richard Snoke. Apparently, Snoke and the other candidate have known each other a long time, have a lot of ties to one another. Snoke’s the older man that was on the video at that white supremacist rally with Hux and Ben Solo. It looks like they’ve all been working to push donors and volunteers from Snoke’s group towards him in order to get him more votes.”

“The Senator’s challenger is in league with white supremacists?”

She nods.

“And the Senator’s son, who is also in league with those people, is also pretty much lobbying for him?”

She nods again.

Poe lets out a low whistle, sitting back further against the couch as the news hits him. He pulls her hand up to his chest, stroking his thumb along her skin while he contemplates the news.

“Mrs. James gave me some names, they could easily be crosschecked with the reports listing the campaign donors,” she says, trailing off.

Poe’s eyes search the room, as if he could find the answers there, before turning to look at Rey. He sighs. “I feel horrible for the Senator. I really do. But if they release this information . . .”

Rey nods. “Yeah. It could cause a lot of damage to his campaign. And although the Senator would probably still get some blowback, Ben Solo would no longer be drawing so much attention to her. Instead, people would, apparently rightfully, be associating him with her challenger.”

Poe lets out something resembling a growl deep in his chest, shaking his head. “I can’t believe that someone like that could actually be a challenger for the Senate seat. But hopefully they’ll be able to use this information, and people will see reason again, that Ben Solo doesn’t represent what the Senator stands for. Hopefully this information is the spark that will light the fire under the Virginia voters, get them to fight for the Senator and all the ideals she stands for.”

“I hope so, too. I don’t know what the Senator or the campaign will do with this information, or how they will use it, but I believe in them,” she says, smiling softly at seeing Poe’s idealism and passion shine through. She’s always been inspired by his innate goodness, at his belief in doing - and fighting - for what was right, and she sees it, especially now, as the Senator is going through one of the hardest fights of her career.

Poe nods and puts an arm around her shoulder, pulling her in close as he brushes a kiss over her hair.

“I believe in them, too. Just like I believe in you. And since there’s nothing we can do about this tonight, and since you deserve to celebrate your victory, we should relax and kick back and watch – whatever this is you pulled up to watch . . . what even is this?” He says, laughing. “But seriously. Eat your pizza. Then we’re gonna see how much cake we can eat before we get sick.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” she says, finally picking up her piece of pizza and taking a bite.

\--

Two weeks later, a pale Ben Solo, dressed all in black, sits on a cable news show, spit flying from his mouth as he practically shakes with anger. The news had leaked of Snoke’s connection to Senator Organa’s challenger for the Senate seat, and the ties with Hux and Ben Solo himself. Campaign donation reports had come out, revealing support from avowed white supremacists and neo-Nazis, and like an avalanche, information surrounding Snoke’s, Hux’s, and Ben Solo’s vast lobbying efforts in an effort to secure those donations came out.

Despite every opportunity being given by the interviewer to Ben Solo to disavow his ties to Snoke, to the challenger, to the white supremacist movement, Ben Solo just digs in deeper. Instead, he disavows his own family, calling them weak, too soft-hearted, and vows to work to bring a powerful, authoritative government, led by a strongman ruler, into power in order to bring forth order and purity to the world once more.

Rey gasps at his comments, grasping harder at Poe’s hands with one of hers, while the other pets at BB’s soft fur. She can’t believe that Ben Solo is saying these things on national television, can’t believe anyone would believe those things to begin with. She hopes the Senator isn’t watching, but knows that she is anyway, her belief in democracy so strong that she would never sit back and not fight its enemies. Even if she could set aside the fight for one night, Rey knows she would watch anyway, to remember that at one point she had a son, a son she loved, even though he had somehow gone terribly, terribly wrong.

When Ben Solo takes the opportunity to bring Anakin Skywalker, Senator Organa’s biological father who she had never known about until after his death, into the conversation, Rey feels her heart fall. Ben Solo openly praises his grandfather’s bigoted views, forgetting that the elder Skywalker had disavowed his views, even if only at the end of his life.

It’s a fight that the Senator has already gone through once. And to hear her son speak admiringly about one of the Senator’s greatest pains, Rey feels her heart break for Leia Organa all over again.


	8. Chapter 8

“Got everything you need?” Poe asks Rey, after she’s tossed her duffel bag into the back of his car and she’s buckled up in the passenger seat. She leans over and gives him a quick kiss on the cheek and confirms that she’s ready to go. After checking his rearview mirror, he carefully pulls back onto the road and heads for Virginia.

It’s a relatively short drive, mostly just the usual evening rush hour traffic, but he feels tense the entire way. It’s election night and they’re headed to the hotel where Senator Organa, her family, staff, and supporters are all waiting for the results to come in.

Recently, he’s taken a fair amount of vacation days from work, so he could spend time on the road in Virginia stumping for the Senator. His schedule has been filled with interviews and speeches, and on more than a few occasions, Finn has roped him into participating in phone banks and door to door canvasses of voters.

Now, he’s headed down to join - what will hopefully be - the victory party.

He’s booked a room at the same hotel where the party will be at, since it’s a tight race and the results could come in hours after the polls closed. No matter how the race turns out, no matter how late it gets, he wants to be there for the Senator and all his friends who’ve supported her and worked on the race.

And he wants to be there for Rey, who, like a lot of her fellow Senate staffers, are attending the celebration tonight. He knows a lot of the staff have felt a bit helpless recently, having to watch their boss fight for every last vote, having to watch their jobs being put on the line, but being unable to actually participate in the campaign process.

“News on or not?” Poe asks, fingers poised above the radio console.

He can practically hear the gears in her head turning, as she mulls over whether hearing the latest updates on the exit polls might be reason enough to turn on the news.

“No,” she says, voice trailing off in uncertainty. Then, “No. Definitely not.”

“You got it,” he replies, in complete agreement with the decision. Instead, he turns on a music station, and within seconds, he’s crooning along with Dean Martin, which elicits a giggle from Rey.

It’s a delightful sound, one he’s missed hearing in person for much of the last two weeks. He’s been so busy that he’s often gone from his home well before dawn, only to return late in the evening. When Rey’s there at the same times he is, she’s usually asleep, only waking long enough to murmur a greeting to him and to receive a kiss, before falling back into slumber.

They’ve mostly kept in touch through text messages and voicemails, their schedules just off enough from each other that they seem to miss talking with each other by mere minutes. He knows Rey’s been extremely busy at the office, too, and been watching BB for him while he’s on the road and keeping Rose company while Finn’s been busy working on the campaign.

But he’s missed her intensely. He feels a longing deep inside him, a part of him that is trying to make up for the unavoidable distance between the two of them these last few weeks.

She must sense him sneaking glances at her out of the corner of his eye, brief moments here and there when he can take his eyes off the road. She reaches over and squeezes his forearm with a teasing grin on her face. “I see you keep looking at me.”

For a brief moment, he thinks maybe he should say something flirty, maybe even suggestive, but with everything going on, the pressure of these last few weeks, the lack of time with her, he decides he’d rather just be honest instead.

“I missed you,” he says, voice soft. He glances at her, sees her teasing grin slide into something gentler, and her hand strokes up and down his arm.

“I missed you, too,” she says. “I really missed you. I know we’ve both been busy, but I didn’t like not seeing you that much these last few weeks.” She pauses, and though he’s focused on the road, he can practically see her biting her lip in thought. “Maybe we should take a vacation somewhere soon. Just the two of us? I’ve got some vacation time saved up.”

Nothing sounds better to him than getting away from the city, and from work, with Rey for a vacation. “That sounds perfect,” he says, not even trying to tamp down a wide smile. “Any place you had in mind?”

“Not particularly. Somewhere warm,” she says, and he agrees, the chilly fall weather already promising a frigid winter.

He wonders . . . he hasn’t seen his dad in over a year, and despite frequent phone calls, he misses him. And his dad and Rey haven’t technically met yet, so, “How about Miami? It’s warm, and - and you can get a chance to meet my dad?”

He’s cautious, knowing that with her history, that sort of question might put more than a little pressure on her, though Poe knows that each of them already know quite a bit about the other, thanks to how often Poe likes to talk about them.

“That sounds perfect,” she says, and any worry Poe had simply evaporates. “I can’t wait to meet your dad. And I think my toes have been frozen for the last two weeks, so Miami sounds perfect.”

He grins, overjoyed at finally having the chance to introduce the two people he loves most in the world. “I guarantee he’ll be just as excited. And it could be a few weeks before we can go, so we should probably find a time to thaw out your toes before then.”

She laughs, and the sound warms him. “It might be beyond hope. They’ve been like a block of ice these last few weeks.”

“Oh, I see. Your toes have been without their very own personal heater recently, huh?”

“That’s right,” she says, a teasing lilt to her voice. “With you gone, how am I supposed to keep them warm?”

He sighs, in mock remorse. It’s a pattern he’s well used to now, even if he can’t help but startle a little every time, causing them both to laugh, when she sticks her toes between his calves to warm them up. “I apologize. You think you could ever forgive me?”

“I might be persuaded. With the election coming to an end, I think we’ll probably be able to spend more time together. My personal heater will be back.”

“Yes, he will,” he says, grinning.

“And the office will return to normal, and Finn will be back home with Rose,” Rey says, trailing off.

He wonders if she’s thinking what’s he thinking. They’ve tentatively discussed the idea before, of her officially moving in with him, since they’re usually spending the night with each other anyway when he’s not on the road. More and more of her things have steadily made their way to his place, and she’s been staying at his place and watching BB when Poe goes out of state on his work trips. They’re practically living together as it is. He thinks it’s probably just a matter of semantics at this point (and a signature on a second lease).

He wonders what will happen if he decides to take this risk, too.

“You could have a permanent personal heater, if you want,” he says, and before she even turns to look at him with a confused expression on her face, he’s already shaking his head in disbelief at whatever that was that came out of his mouth. He probably should have thought his words through first, but she’s always tripped him up, in the best of ways. “What I meant to say was, if you want, you can come live with me, permanently. Or we could find a new place, whatever you want. But we already spend so much time together that it practically feels like we are living together. And I’d like to live with you. It’d be nice to come home to you.”

Rey is silent for a minute, and Poe worries as the seconds tick by. But then he senses her slow smile more than sees it, and she says, “I could have my own permanent personal heater.”

“That’s what you’re focusing on? That didn’t even make sense when I said it!” Poe says with a laugh.

“It made perfect sense,” Rey says, and she reaches out, grasping his hand where it’s resting on his knee and brings it to her lips, kissing it. “My lease is ending at the end of February. If you’re serious about it, I would love to move in with you, Poe.”

His heart feels like it’s going to beat out of his chest at how overjoyed he is. “I guess you’re moving in with me, then.”

She strokes her thumb over his knuckles. “It’d be nice to come home to you, too.”

\--

From the outside, the hotel looks like any other.

On the inside, though, it’s a virtual hive of activity, journalists and cameramen lugging their equipment into the large ballroom, and a mix of people in suits and folks in clothing ranging from jeans to cocktail dress milling about the lobby. Local politicians, staff, and volunteers will soon be filling the ballroom, and win or lose, they’ve come to party.

Poe’s been to this very same hotel before, 12 years ago when he was just some college-aged hotshot wannabe politico, who had been drawn into the Senator’s campaign by her combination of idealism, leadership, and fearlessness, evident in the news coverage of her career, and by the stories his parents had told him of their friend. By the time he discovered her wicked sense of humor, he was hooked, and his career has, in many ways, been intertwined with hers ever since.

Poe navigates through the crowd, holding onto Rey’s hand the entire time. Once on the elevator, he turns to her and grins, even as he’s leaning down to press a soft kiss to her lips.

“This might be the last time we have a moment to ourselves tonight,” he says.

She just grins right back at him before pulling him towards her once more, initiating a more searing kiss that leaves him gasping for breath by the time the elevator arrives at their floor.

“A kiss for luck,” she says, winking at him as she steps out of the elevator.

It takes him a moment to gather his wits, but then he’s following her, being waved past the security guard into the suite of rooms occupied by the Senator, her husband and brother, and a handful of close friends.

A small crowd has already formed in the suite, though the Senator and her husband are nowhere in sight. He sees Amilyn Holdo, the Senator’s chief of staff sitting with Senator Ackbar, who was joining the Senator tonight since his reelection campaign was still two years away. Off in the corner, Luke Skywalker was talking with Lando Calrissian, and after making their way a little further into the room, he sees Kaydel Connix speaking with Korrie Sella, who was serving as the Senator’s campaign communications director. The other faces he doesn’t recognize, though he supposes that with the election results looming down on them, they’ll all soon become fast friends.

An hour into it, he and Rey had long been separated (and had been separated almost the first minute they had arrived, when Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian had both spotted her and lit up, pulling her into their conversation. He watches her sometimes, her face animated and hands gesticulating, clearly excited about whatever they’re discussing.

And while Rey had been pulled into what appears to be a very enjoyable conversation, Poe doesn’t feel nearly as lucky when Senator Ackbar pulls him into his conversation. He adores Senator Ackbar, has respected him for years, but he’s never been completely comfortable with Amilyn Holdo. Once Senator Ackbar moves off to say hello to another colleague, Poe takes the opportunity to flit off himself, grabbing some food and drink while catching up with a few others as well.

It’s only about twenty minutes before polls close when Senator Organa comes bustling in. She appears to be as cool as a cucumber, relaxed even as she moves around greeting people.

However, her husband appears to be less so. There’s a scowl on his face, and his hand is already tugging at his tie.

Poe grins. It’s not often one sees Han Solo in a suit and tie. No wonder he looks so unhappy.

The grin is still on Poe’s face as Han heads straight for the small table of drinks, where Poe had been standing nursing his own drink, and pours himself a whiskey.

Han turns that scowl towards him, asking “What you grinning at?” before sighing, his hand tugging at his tie once more even as he takes a sip of his drink. “Nah, I’d be laughing at me, too, seeing me in this monkey suit.”

“I would never, sir,” Poe says, even as his grin lingers.

“You have a bad poker face, kid. Besides, we all know if your dad was here, he would be laughing it up seeing me like this.”

“Maybe. Then again, I’ve never seen him in a suit and tie either. He’d probably be pretty sympathetic to your plight.”

“He always did have my back,” Han muses. “He could probably figure out a way I could ditch this tie.”

Poe opens his mouth, about to reply, when Korrie Sella’s voice breaks above the din.

“And the polls have closed!”

Everyone gathers a little closer to the television then, although it’s too soon for any results. But conversations grow more hushed, allowing the news anchors voices to be heard.

The Senator has held a decent lead in the last few weeks, just outside the margin of error. By all appearances she should win, but her challenger, who had taken a devastating hit when the news broke of his ties to white supremacists, including the Senator’s son, had somehow managed to gain some of those votes back.

It makes Poe sick. But he’s keeping the faith.

It’s that very belief in Leia Organa, the people who surround him, and the Virginia voters, that help get him through the next several hours. It’s nearing midnight, and people are growing quiet as they wait for the last few precincts to come in. Barring any strange and sudden surprises, it looks good for the Senator, but now it just needs to be made official.

He leans a little further into Rey, who had taken a seat beside him on the couch about an hour ago. He’s glad she’s there, is reassured by the warmth she’s exuding. He reaches over to grasp the hand that rests on her knees, squeezing her fingers gently.

She turns her face towards his, so she’s close enough to whisper in his ear without anyone else hearing. Despite the quietness of her voice, he can still make out the vulnerability that laces her tone.

“What happens if we lose?”

He’s not sure if she’s talking about what’ll happen to herself personally, or maybe her friends and coworkers working for Senator Organa. Or maybe she’s referring to the country as a whole. Is it possible to reconcile your belief in freedom and democracy, in your hope for a better country, if your fellow citizen can support someone who encapsulates the worst tendencies in man?

He doesn’t know which question she’s asking. But he thinks he knows the answer to all of them, anyway.

“Same thing as if we win. We fight on.”

He turns his head just enough to meet her eyes, sees her looking back, studying him. She nods at him, short and succinct, before she flips her hand over, letting their fingers intertwine as she turns back to the television.

He feels a tap on his shoulder a minute later. It’s Amilyn Holdo. He knows she’s not there to make any sort of small talk with him. His confusion melts away when she says, “Senator Organa would like to speak with you. She’s in her room.”

He nods at Amilyn, and glances over at Rey. She offers him a small smile even as an eyebrow raises in curiosity. He just shrugs, and with one last glance over his shoulder to look at the latest precinct results being broadcast on the television, he follows Amilyn across the hall.

When she pushes the door open, he follows her inside. She makes her way to the makeshift bar, pouring herself a drink before turning back to him. He’s a little unnerved by the way she seems to be assessing him, so he turns his attention away from her. Han Solo is standing across the room, staring out a window while nursing his drink, and the Senator stands near the television, talking quietly with her campaign director.

The tone of the room is somber, and he thinks for a moment that maybe they have more information than the television networks, that maybe they sense they are about to lose the race. But that’s not quite it, he thinks. There’s something else going on just beneath the surface.

With a final nod from the Senator, the campaign director makes her way from the room.

Everyone else stays, and suddenly Poe feels all eyes on him.

The Senator smiles at him. It’s not the friendly, cheerful look he sees on her face when they meet at outside events, or that he notices when she’s talking with close friends. No, this is . . . more. It’s the smile he sees on her face when she’s campaigning at rallies, asking her supporters to step up and get out the vote. It’s the look on her face when she tells them it’s time to get to work.

He’s seen this look directed at him before. It’s the same strong, confident smile she had on her face the first time she had asked him to work on her campaign. The same look she had when she asked him to serve on her staff. The same look she had when she told him he needed to leave her office, to step up and become the executive director of his current organization.

“Poe. Sit down, please,” the Senator says, gesturing to one of the armchairs.

He can practically sense the trademark Han Solo smirk directed at him. If there’s anyone who knows the power of Senator Organa’s personality, it’s him.

Poe wonders what he’s about to get himself into.

The Senator settles into the chair beside him. Her face is calm, but serious, as she faces him. “I know I’ve asked a lot of you before. You’ve taken on a lot of responsibility for one so young. But you’re smart, talented, and you have one of the best hearts of anyone I know, and every single time you’ve stepped up and exceeded my expectations,” she says, pausing as she takes the measure of him. “Now I need to ask you to step up once more. Poe, I’m hoping to leave the Senate in six years. It’s about time, and I’m getting old. But as we’ve seen in this election cycle, evil is arising once more in the world. There’s a darkness brewing, and I’m not going to retire from the Senate if there’s a chance that I would leave Virginia in worse hands.”

She reaches out, resting her hand on his forearm. She’s scrutinizing him closely, and he gets the sense that Amilyn Holdo and Han Solo are watching him, too. Poe doesn’t quite know what she’s heading for, already a bit stunned at her announcement. He wants to protest that no, she’s not too old, that she still has a lot of fight left in her, but there’s something in her eyes that causes him to remain silent.

“The congresswoman in the Tenth Congressional District – your congresswoman – is planning to announce her run for governor before the end of the year. The seat’s going to be open, and we need to build our bench to make sure we have plenty of soldiers in this fight. Poe, I need you to run for the House seat, so you can then run for my Senate seat when it’s my time to go. I need you to take my place in this fight.” She leans towards him, the hand resting on his forearm squeezing gently, as if to further emphasize her words. “Tensions are rising, and this state needs a spark of hope. You’re it, Poe. Will you run?”

Poe’s stunned. He feels like his jaw has pretty much hit the floor. Of all the things he thought she might have asked of him, that would be the last on his list. He glances around, taking stock of the room. Han is smirking at him over the top of his whiskey glass, and to his surprise, Amilyn Holdo is looking at him steadily, a small smile turning up the corners of her lips.

He knew Senator Organa would have consulted her before asking this of him. But there’s no skepticism on her face, or anger, or disapproval. In fact, she looks like she approves?

Huh. That’s something he would never have guessed.

In his shock, the silence must have gone too long, and he’s suddenly brought back into the moment when the Senator clears her throat. He turns back to her, one eyebrow raised as she grins at him.

He fumbles for words. “I’m sorry, Senator. I just – I wasn’t expecting . . . that. I don’t know what to say,” he says, trailing off, still feeling at sea.

“It’s good to know I’ve still got a few surprises left in me,” she says, patting his forearm. “Take some time to think it over. Talk to your father, talk to Rey. And of course, we’ll talk more later. I’ll answer any questions you have. But think about it and come back to me after the new year with your answer. I can put you in touch with some people who could help get your campaign off the ground.”

A hurried knock sounds from the door then, and it quickly opens to reveal the face of her campaign director. “Senator Organa,” she says, slightly out of breath. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but . . .” and her voice trails off as she seems to take in the somber, serious mood of the people inside.

“Yes?” Senator Organa asks, directing her attention to the aide.

That one short word seems to snap the aide out of her daze. Her face brightens, a wide smile overtaking her face, and she suddenly seems to be vibrating in excitement. “It’s official,” she says. “The last few precincts came in, and the news is just about to report it. Congratulations, Senator. You’ve won re-election.”

Suddenly, they can hear cheers reverberating from across the hallway as her friends and staff celebrate. The mood in the room lightens considerably at the news, and Han Solo and Amilyn Holdo walk forward to congratulate her. The campaign director slips back into the hallway, no doubt to continue the celebrations with her staff.

The Senator pulls away from hugging her husband and straightens her suit and hair, once more becoming the picture of a poised professional, though the smile tugging at her lips reveals her still considerable pleasure at having won re-election.

While Han and Amilyn head for the door, she steps up to Poe. He realizes he’s still standing there, a little dumbstruck at what’s been asked of him. He’s absolutely positive it shows on his face by the way she’s now smirking at him.

He gets himself together long enough to give her his congratulations, to let her know how proud he is of the work she’s done that’s brought her here.

She claps him on the shoulder. “I think we’ve had enough of the serious conversations for tonight, Poe. I think we deserve to celebrate the victory, don’t you?”

He follows them back to the crowded suite, is practically knocked sideways at the strength of the cheers that greet them as Senator Organa walks into the room. He’s a step behind, and just tries to take it all in, the pride and the pleasure written all over everyone’s faces as the Senator makes her way around the room.

He meets Rey’s eyes from across the room. She had been clapping and cheering along with the rest, but something she sees on his face seems to cause her hands to slow down in mid-air and a look of concern to cross her features.

He can’t have that. Not tonight. They had won a hard-fought election, and all of them – especially her, he thinks – deserve a night of celebration.

He does his best to shrug off the Senator’s question for now, paints a smile across his face and lets out a whoop of victory as he makes his way across the room to wrap her up in a hug. He swings her around, delighted at her laughter ringing in his ear, and suddenly he’s centered once more.

In the blink of an eye, people make their way from the candidate’s suites, finding places amongst the crowd in the ballroom while the Senator finishes preparing for her victory speech. The crowd is loud, celebratory, high fives and hugs still being exchanged even though the news had come in minutes before.

Poe didn’t think it could get any louder in the ballroom, but he was sorely mistaken as the crowd erupts into cheers as Senator Organa walks on stage, followed by her husband and her top campaign staff and surrogates. She waves at the crowd, shaking hands and high fiving the people in the front row, practically beaming as she works the line of people.

He reaches his hand out to Rey, pulling her a little closer as they exchange celebratory smiles.

Once Senator Organa reaches the podium, he can’t help but laugh a little as the crowd continues its ceaseless cheering, an almost bashful smile appearing on the Senator’s face as she tries to quiet the room full of people.

When the speech begins, it’s typical enough. She thanks the voters of Virginia, her campaign staff, and the staff in her D.C. office. She promises to keep fighting for the citizens of the great state of Virginia, for all the issues they care about and that are important to their lives.

Then she quiets down, her celebratory tone becoming something more somber, controlled, with that underlying quiet strength that’s always been such an integral part of her.

“If there is one thing this election should teach us, one thing this most recent era of American history should teach us, is that democracy is not for the weak. It is not for those who wish to sit blithely by, to rest on their laurels and allow others to make the decisions for them.

“No. Democracy takes work. Otherwise, the scared, the weak, the angry, those most willing to hurt others in order to get ahead, will be the ones to make decisions. Cause as we have seen, they are willing to show up and work to make their evil ends a reality.

“They will not stop. So, neither shall we. We will show up. We will fight. We will fight in order to defend our country, our democracy, our very hope in the future.  We will fight for the idea that each human life inherently has dignity, that each human life has value, that humanity must be respected above all else. There can be no surrender in this fight, so we will fight on. I will fight on for you. There’s not a lot one can promise in life, but this I can. I promise you, I will fight on until the very end.”

Senator Organa continues speaking, but her voice fades out as his thoughts turn inward. He can see Rey out of the corner of his eye, face rapt as the Senator continues to speak.

And even as he watches her, he can’t help but think he’s got plans. He’s taking Rey home to meet his dad. He thinks they’re going to move in together, finally make it official. He wants to, he knows that. And then there’s his mother’s ring hanging from the chain around his neck, and every day the desire to see it around her finger grows stronger.

But she needs to know . . . what, exactly? That the Senator has asked him to step up? That he’s seriously thinking about it?

He knows he needs to tell her about what the Senator has asked of him. Knows that he needs to tell her sooner rather than later, before they make any big decisions, before they take any more big steps, so she can go forward with her eyes open. He doesn’t know what her reaction would be, can’t even begin to guess, but he knows she deserves openness and honesty and communication.

He doesn’t know what he’s going to do, not yet. And half an hour ago, when Senator Organa asked him to step up, he honestly thought he might have laughed out loud at the idea of him running for Congress if it hadn’t been for the serious look on the Senator’s face.

But now – now, he’s heard Senator Organa speak of the need to fight for freedom, for democracy, for the very future of the country. And it is those ideas that speak to the very core of his beliefs, those formed when he was a young child sitting in his parents’ laps, learning the promise this country held from the children of immigrants themselves.

So, he thinks, _maybe._

He doesn’t know what he’s going to do, not yet. But she needs to know what he’s facing. But, for now, he can’t help but think, he had plans.

And now those plans might be thrown up in the air.

 _Maybe_ . . .


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're nearing the end, folks! I added one extra chapter to the final count, as this part got a bit wordy, so I ended up splitting it into two chapters. After that, all that is left is the epilogue. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

There’s nothing like losing to bring out the worst in someone.

Granted, Ben Solo was pretty much scraping the bottom of the barrel anyway. But ever since Senator Organa beat his preferred candidate, his face has been featured on the news almost every other day, in brief clips where he seems to be spitting out even more hatred and vitriol.

She wonders when it’s going to stop. In a bleaker part of her mind, she wonders _if_ it’s ever going to stop.

However, just before that last, pessimistic thought takes hold, another voice, this one familiar and warm, whispers, _we fight on_. She latches on to that thought, before grabbing the remote to switch the channel.

Rey sighs and leans further back into the couch in an attempt to relax. Her legs are stretched out to rest on the coffee table and BB alternates between resting his head on her lap and begging for some of her pizza.

She flips back and forth between the weather channel, wondering how it could be so cold in mid-November, and a rerun of Parks and Recreation, when she hears the key turn in the lock. BB’s attention is immediately diverted to the door, and when he sees Poe walk in, he jumps off the couch, running as fast as his short legs could carry him to Poe.

Poe immediately kneels until he’s face level with the little corgi, scratching behind his ears and along his sides, laughing while BB tries to lick his face. “It’s good to see you, too, buddy!”

In response, BB immediately flops over onto his back to let Poe rub at his belly.

Rey is amused at BB’s almost ecstatic response to Poe’s arrival, and she grins at Poe as he finally stands and walks over to her. He leans down to kiss her, only to pull back, lick his lips, and say, “Pepperoni?”

“Extra pepperoni,” she says, laughing at his exaggerated moan of pleasure in response. “Box is in the kitchen.”

He joins her on the couch a minute later, kicking back as he dives into his pile of pizza.

Rey can see Poe taking little peeks at her out of the corner of his eye. He doesn’t say anything though, and if it wasn’t for the almost pensive look on his face, she would tease him about it. He seems to have been more contemplative recently, lost in thought when he thinks she isn’t looking, and she wonders what it could be. She knows he’ll open up to her eventually when he’s ready, but for now, she can’t help but wonder.

She knows Poe’s been stressed at work as the holidays approach, and along with it the main fundraising season. Like last year, it’s eating away at all his extra time, especially since he’s still making up for all the lost time from campaigning for Senator Organa.

She’s a little envious of it, actually. It seems he has purpose, a plan – a path where he can fight the good fight. As the executive director of a national organization supporting veterans, he’s making a difference in a lot of lives.

And she’s – well, she’s feeling a little lost. She had a big win earlier this year, in helping to get the foster care bill passed in Congress, but since then . . . since then, she’s worked on a myriad of issues that seem to have made little progress and had gotten lost amongst the reelection battle.

She knows she has the passion. She knows she has the skill. But she’s wondering if her position on the Senator’s staff is really the best place for her to use those assets anymore. She wonders if being a Senate staffer is really her goal in life, with its long hours, low pay, and lack of flexibility to focus on what she considers to be the most important issues. She’s wondering if there might be a better place out there for her, one where she can make a real difference, where she can really fight for the things she cares about.

Poe sighs, leaning his head back on the couch and closing his eyes. Rey takes his empty plate and sets it on the table along with hers, leaning back so she could run her fingers through his hair. He hums his appreciation, and they sit like this for a few minutes until his phone beeps.

Her eyes follow Poe as he reaches over and grabs his phone. A moment later, he laughs, and turns to her. “Dad is wondering what your favorite foods are.”

She raises her eyebrow in surprise, and he says, “I told you, be prepared to eat when we get there. He’s excited to meet you. And he shows his excitement by cooking.”

“Oh yeah, we’re going to get along just fine, me and him,” she says, laughing.

Poe leans over and kisses her cheek before returning to his phone and typing. “Any special requests?”

“Surprise me,” she says, still watching Poe as his fingers fly across the keyboard.

They’re leaving for Miami in less than a week, and she’s excited to finally get a chance to meet Poe’s dad, relax in (hopefully) warmer temperatures, and, by all accounts, eat her body weight in delicious, home-cooked food.

She hopes Poe will relax too, that whatever this thing is that seems to be weighing him down finally lifts off his shoulders.

After a few minutes of texting back and forth with his dad, he puts his phone down and leans back into the couch. He turns his gaze towards her, once again contemplative and assessing, and she meets his eyes, hoping to convey that she’s willing to listen to whatever he might have to say.

She thinks he’s just about to speak, his eyebrows furrowing and mouth twitching a little, and then –

Then her phone rings.

She’s intending to silence it, send the caller straight to voicemail, but then she catches sight of the caller ID.

 _Strange_.

“I can send it to voicemail,” she says anyway, but Poe smiles at her and waves a hand. Whatever he had been about to say, the mood had clearly passed.

She stifles a sigh, worry and curiosity both battling simultaneously within her. Instead, she says, “I’ll be a minute,” and wanders off to the bedroom to take the call.

\--

 “No, no, sit, please!” Kes Dameron says, ushering Rey to a seat at the kitchen table. His smile is almost wider than Poe’s, who stands behind his dad at the kitchen counter, grinning at Rey.

“You sure you don’t want any help?”

“You’re my guest,” Kes says, waving off Rey’s last futile attempts.

“And what am I, chopped liver?” Poe asks, hands already busy preparing the vegetables to be chopped.

“No, you’re my son,” Kes says teasingly, knocking his shoulder against Poe’s as he moves to stand alongside him. “And as my son, you get to help me show our guest a good time.”

Rey watches avidly as the two men practically move in sync, the years of working together in this very kitchen clearly evident in their movement. Their banter is almost as impressive, and she watches amused as they tease each other back and forth.

Once, she gets in a witty retort to something Poe says, and Kes just turns to Poe and says, “Oh, I like her,” before turning to Rey and giving her a thumbs up.

Luckily, Kes turns back to the stove before a bright red blush flares across her cheeks. Her eyes do meet Poe’s, however, but the look on his face is so full of love and affection that she forgets her bashfulness within a moment.

The first evening they had arrived at Kes Dameron’s little house on the outskirts of Miami, she had felt uncharacteristically shy and more than a little anxious as she and Poe tumbled out of the taxi with their luggage and BB in tow. Kes Dameron had practically sprinted down the steps, wrapping Poe up in a bear hug, saying something to him that got lost amongst the loud, excited yaps from the corgi in his carrier.

The taxi had pulled away from the curb just as Kes pulled away from Poe, turning his attention to her.

“Welcome, Rey,” he said, warm smile and kind eyes now firmly directed to her. “I’m so glad to finally meet you. May I hug you?”

Poe had warned her that his dad was the hugging type, and the fact that he had asked first before hugging her immediately put her at ease. With a nod, she accepted, and was immediately wrapped up in one of the warmest hugs she had ever experienced. Her mind flashed back to the first time she had seen the picture of Kes Dameron hanging on Poe’s wall and had thought of how striking the family resemblance was. Apparently, it went beyond just their looks.

Within minutes of arriving, Kes had her laughing until her sides ached. Like when she had met Poe, within a short amount of time, she was comfortable in his presence.

It certainly helped that he was a prolific cook, and she was a prolific eater. For the last two days, her stomach has practically been fit to burst she’s eaten so much.

This afternoon, though, Kes and Poe bring plates upon plates of food to the kitchen table, and they sit in the warm sunshine streaming in through the windows as they eat a leisurely lunch. Although for the last two days Poe has seemed to relax, the weight has appeared back on his shoulders. It’s only when she and Poe help with the dishes, and Kes leaves to meet up with a few buddies to watch the game, that she thinks Poe might finally tell her what’s going on.

With a sigh, he wipes his hands on a dish towel and looks over at her. “You have a minute?”

“For you, I might even have two,” she replies, her teasing words belied by her soft tone and even softer smile.

He leads them to the porch swing overlooking the backyard, and for a minute they just sit there and watch BB race through the small space before finally flopping down in a patch of early afternoon sunlight.

“Senator Organa asked me to run for Congress.”

Poe’s sudden statement startles Rey, and it takes her a moment for her to realize exactly what he said. She turns to him, thinking maybe she had misheard him, but the way he’s staring at her is nervous, worried . . . and almost hopeful?

Poe continues, “The night of the election, when Holdo came and got me because the Senator wanted to speak with me, that’s what she wanted to talk about. The congresswoman in my district is going to be running for governor, and the seat’s going to be open, and the Senator wants me to run for it,” he trails off uncertainly. “I think she’s thinking of retiring. Down the road, of course, but I think she wants to make sure there’s a plan in place.”

Rey needs a moment, needs him to slow down so she can begin to process this unexpected turn of events. She desperately casts about for something to say, finally settles on, “And that plan is . . . you? What did you say?”

“Nothing. I didn’t say anything. What would I have said in that situation anyway?”

She shrugs. “I don’t know.” Her voice lowers in uncertainty. “Did you say yes?”

“No. No, I didn’t say anything,” he says. “I said I needed to think about it. To talk to you. To dad.”

“Have you talked to Kes?”

“Yeah. Yesterday morning,” he says, and Rey thinks the two certainly had long enough to have the conversation then, as she had gone to the beach for a long, early morning run.

“What did he say?”

“He said I should talk to you. I was waiting on the right time.”

She nods. “Alright. Well, here we are.”

“Here we are,” Poe says, eyes still trained on Rey’s face.

“So, let’s talk about it,” she says. She hopes her voice sounds confident and steady, and not like her stomach has started roiling with anxiety. She tries to will her nerves to calm down, says, “I guess we should start with the obvious. What do you want to do?”

“I think,” Poe says, pausing briefly, and Rey can see him swallow hard before continuing. “I think I want to do it.” Rey listens as he continues, as he talks about how he believes that it’s his duty – his calling, really – to serve, to fight for what’s right, that if he backed down from this fight now, that he’d be undermining all that his parents had taught him and fought for themselves.

Rey admires his passion, his beliefs, and listens to him speak about the ideas he has of making this a better place for everyone. And while she feels selfish for even thinking it, she can’t help but think that if he decided to run, she won’t see him for most of the next year or more. She’s seen how long Rose and Finn were apart. She’s seen how often the Senator was gone from the office or separated from her family to campaign. She had been by herself for so long, abandoned and alone, until she had found Finn and Ben Kenobi.  _And now_ , a cruel voice whispers in the back of her head, _he’s abandoning you, it’s just like before._

She shuts her eyes, trying to ignore that thought, when Poe’s voice breaks through. “Rey? Are you okay?”

She opens her eyes and meets his worried gaze, tries to smile at him as she nods.

“What are you thinking?” He asks her.

“I don’t know.”

“If you don’t want me to do this, tell me. You’re the most important thing in my life. I don’t want to hurt you,” he says, voice breaking. “I don’t want to lose you. Tell me if it’ll be too much.”

A million different thoughts are rolling through her head, and she can’t settle on one, and even if she could her throat feels too tight to speak. She tries to swallow it down, but she can’t, so she just reaches out to hold his hand.

“I think we can make this work,” he says, tentatively. “I know I’ll be campaigning a lot, but the district is pretty small, so I’ll usually be home at night, and even when there are events and fundraisers and such, there’s always the phone.”

She reaches out to grasp his hand even if she can’t quite meet his eyes anymore. “I need to think about it.”

He squeezes her hand, and he seems to realize that’s it for their conversation at the moment. They turn to look out into the backyard again, watching as BB scratches his back in the grass and settles down once more.

\--

“Fiona James offered me a job.”

Poe’s putting clean dishes back up in the cabinet in his father’s kitchen, and Rey can see the slight pause in his movements before the dish is gently set down and he turns to face her.

“Fiona James? She’s the head of the childhood and foster care organization, right? The one you worked with on that bill?”

Rey nods, before lifting herself off the part of the wall she had been leaning against and walking to sit at the kitchen table.

“Yeah. She called me a few weeks ago. She wants me to be the deputy director of their issues and public policy department.”

“That’s wonderful news, Rey. I’m so happy for you,” Poe says, voice enthusiastic before he trails off, confused. He cocks his head to the side as he tries to puzzle out Rey’s expression. “We are happy about this, right?”

Rey chuckles, even as she nods in response to Poe’s question. She knows her face isn’t exactly screaming happiness at the moment, not when she has so much on her mind. Not when her life has suddenly decided to throw her one curveball after the other.

“Then what is it?” Poe asks, sitting down next to her and reaching for her hand. “Is it – is it about the congressional seat?”

She nods, worrying her lip as she once more thinks over what she has to say.

“It’s a step up. It’s several steps up. It’s a I-can’t-believe-they’re-even-considering-taking-a-chance-on-me kind of step up.” Rey holds up a hand to stop Poe when he goes to interrupt, no doubt to protest her even seemingly putting herself down, and his mouth closes as he nods at her to continue. “It’s a big opportunity for me. But it’s a big commitment. And if I wanna do this, and you wanna run for office, how is this even gonna work? How are we going to find time for each other?”

She knows that the job she’s been offered would be a big commitment. She knows a campaign takes up a lot of a person’s time, as does serving in congress. And she has no doubt that Poe will win the election if he chooses to run. Rey clutches at Poe’s hand harder, terrified at the idea that it could cause them to drift apart as they spend more and more time away from each other until she’s left behind once again.

“And then you’ll be in the public eye all the time, surrounded by adoring fans and politicos,” she says, as her voice becomes softer. “I’m scared, Poe.”

Her eyes have drifted down to look at her knees, but when her hand is lifted and Poe’s mouth presses a kiss to her knuckles as a shaky breath leaves his mouth, her eyes come back up. His own eyes are teary and full of emotion, and he presses another kiss to her hand as he says, “Me too, sweetheart. Me too.”

Of all the things he could have said, the fact that he also felt scared made her feel less alone, more like they were in this together. Still, she steeled her spine before speaking again.

“I don’t know how this will affect our lives, not really. But I do know that I can’t be left behind, Poe. Not again. I’ve been abandoned too many times to let it happen again. And I don’t know what role I would play in your campaign, if you would even want me too, but I can’t give up my life, my career for you – I’ve worked too hard to survive and get this far. If you want to run, then you should. But you need to tell me now if you think you can’t make this - make us - work. I need to be a priority. I get that you won’t always have a lot of free time, but I need you to promise that you’ll stay in touch on the road, that you’ll communicate with me and not just forget about me when you’re too busy or too tired or whatever.”

They’re both leaning towards each other, elbows resting on their knees as they grasp at each other’s hands. Poe’s eyes are still a little watery, and she knows hers are, too. It feels like they are at a crossroads now, the very future of their relationship at stake.

“You’re it for me, Rey. I know it. I think I’ve known it from the very beginning.” Poe looks down at their joined hands, runs his thumbs over her knuckles. When he looks up to meet her eyes, a soft smile graces his face, and she feels like a weight is lifted from her shoulders at that look. “And if you would want to play a part in my campaign, any part at all, I’m fully on board with that. And if you want no part of the campaign, I’m fully on board with that, too. We can work that out, we can work anything out, I think, as long as we keep communicating. I think we’re getting pretty good at it,” he says, giving her a watery grin. “But Rey, you gotta know. You are the most important thing in my life. And it will stay that way, I promise you that. I know a campaign is hard, but there is nothing that could cause me to forget about you or to leave you behind, because you’re it for me.”

She knows that he’s it for her, too. She loves him, trusts him, like no one else before.

Poe squeezes her hands and smiles, soft and warm, at her. “So, you’re going to take that job?”

Rey smiles back. “Hell yeah. And you? You going to run?”

Poe’s eyes scan her face once more, before he nods once, slowly. “Yeah. Yeah, I think so.”

“We’re gonna do this?”

A wide smile breaks out on Poe’s face. “We’re gonna do this.”


	10. Chapter 10

On the first evening of the new Senate term, Senator Organa rented out a local bar and invited her senate and campaign staffs and her close friends and supporters to celebrate. The mood was almost as ebullient as election night itself, though decidedly less stressful, since they hadn’t been spending all evening waiting on election results.

Rey sat with Finn, Rose, and Poe in a relatively quiet corner, just enjoying each other’s company while people watching. A steady stream of pizza, nachos, wings, and various other foods were being brought out by the bar’s staff, and she cheerfully heaped a steady stream of them onto her plate. She was happy, even as she felt the pressure of what the future might hold pressing down on her. She knows Poe is preparing to announce and has been working with the Senator on making the right connections and preparations. She knows she’s going to have to talk to the Senator and Amilyn Holdo soon about her job offer. And she also knows that she doesn’t know at all what to expect from Poe’s campaign or what effects it could have on their relationship.

She tries to remind herself to stay in the moment, that she could be happy now even as she senses so much uncertainty ahead.

She realizes then that she had spaced out of the conversation and recommits herself to their little group. But then Finn spies a colleague from the campaign across the room, and he’s adamant that he just must introduce Rose to them. Rose just laughs and lets him lead her away.

Then it’s Poe, who needs to step to the restroom, but promises to make a hasty return so that she wouldn’t have to sit alone for long.

She’s not worried, at least not until she sees Poe reenter the room and be immediately swept up into a conversation with a slightly inebriated Senator Ackbar. Luke joins them a moment later, and Poe sends an apologetic look towards Rey.

Rey huffs out a laugh, amused at Poe’s predicament. He’s not getting out of that conversation anytime soon.

Rey briefly turns her attention back to her plateful of food, wondering if she should just stay where she was or whether she should be social and walk around and mingle.

The choice is made for her a moment later when Han Solo sits down next to her.

“Sir,” she says in acknowledgment, a bit surprised at his sudden appearance.

“Sir?” Han Solo snorts. “Sir. I don’t know who you’re addressing with that title, but it’s not me. My name is Han.”

Rey grins, amused. They’ve had this conversation before. “Alright, Han,” she says, hoping that his name comes out casually (and not in awe, not like when she had learned about his military exploits and the legendary plane of his that sits in a local hangar, owned and cared for by him and his friend).

Her tone was probably not as casual as she hoped, and it seems that Han picked up on it immediately.

“You’re gonna have to get used to it sooner rather than later, if we’re to become colleagues.”

At first, she panics, wondering how he learned about her job offer, but realizes a moment later that he couldn’t be talking about that, not when he says colleagues.

“It’s an exclusive club, you know,” he continues, glancing over at his wife who’s standing by the bar talking with Amilyn Holdo and Korrie Sella. “And no one knows just how hard it can be until they’re in it. They’ve got all sorts of resources to help transition the senators and representatives into their jobs, and before that, plenty of people who’ve run elections to help them along and advise them. Their partners, though?” He shakes his head. “Not so much. They got some programs and stuff once the campaign is over and the winner comes to DC. But it’s about the least helpful hogwash you’ve ever heard in your life. Those lectures aren’t made for people who have their own lives and careers, like you and me.”

“You’ve made it look easy,” she says.

“It’s not,” he says, a wry grin on his face as he notices her grimace. “But it’s worth it. It’s absolutely worth it.”

Rey catches him gazing towards the Senator once more, and almost has to avert her eyes, as if she was intruding on a private moment. After a brief pause, she asks, “So, how did you do it then?”

He shrugs. “There’s no set path, no directions to follow. You just do it. You talk it through, you compromise – you argue it out if you need to before that, but then you compromise.” He glances towards her out of the corner of his eye. “Yeah, I know this has been real helpful. But no one can tell you how to do it, and it’s not something you know how to do until you’ve done it.”

Rey nods, an amused if weary smile on her face at Han Solo’s knowing glance.

“Listen, kid. You’ll be okay. You’re strong, tough, and got a good head on your shoulders. I know we share a similar . . . history,” he says, and Rey knows he’s referring to their shared story, alone as children fighting to survive in a tough world, trying to craft a stable life from almost nothing. “I know where you’re coming from. And if I can do it, so can you.” He pauses, cocks his head to the side as if thinking deeply. “No, that’s not quite right. You’ll do it better.”

The Senator waves at Han from across the room to come and join her conversation, and Han holds up his glass in acknowledgement. He stands, but first turns to Rey, placing his hand on her shoulder before he goes.

“You’ve got my email and my cell if you need it, right?”

She nods, and he squeezes her shoulder once more.

“You’ll be fine. You both will,” he says, before heading towards the Senator.

\--

It’s early spring, and Poe is less than a month away from announcing his run for Congress. He’s got key positions filled – save one, and Rey is sure that person will accept – and he’s been laying the groundwork for a leave of absence from his organization to run his campaign, and meeting with advisors more often than not.

Rey knows that he’s also been in contact with Senator Organa even more so now, trying to soak up every last bit of wisdom from her that he can before he begins to lead his own team.

She’s now a month into her new job and loving every minute, even as she spends every working moment zealously attempting to gain new knowledge and skills to better support her work. She’s tired but energized at the same time.

With both of their busy schedules, she’s kind of amazed that they both found time on a Saturday to go out on a date. Poe had wanted to surprise her, but within blocks of their destination, she knows exactly where they are.

Poe grins as he holds out his hand and helps her out of their taxi. “And what do you think of the surprise, milady?”

“The botanical garden? I love it, this is wonderful,” she replies, leaning over to press a kiss to Poe’s cheek.

They’d been here several times since they had their very first date here almost a year and a half earlier, but Rey can’t help but smile. It’s one of her favorite places – and she knows it’s one of Poe’s, too – and it has been several months since they’ve been back.

Once again, they found themselves exploring the tropics. They joined a tour at first, and although Rey was trying to pay attention to the lecture, she couldn’t help but dart around, taking in the variety of spectacular plants filling the space.

Afterwards, Poe clasped her hand in his, and she happily followed him as they slowly meandered around the area.

“Wait, hold on,” Rey says after a minute, halting before leaning over and snapping a picture of a bright orange flower. After she hits a few buttons on her phone, she grins up at Poe. “Alright, let’s go.”

“What was that?”

“Oh, your dad and I were talking about this bloom when we were in Miami. I figured I would send him a picture of it.”

“You’re texting my dad?”

“Oh yeah, we exchanged numbers while we were down there. He keeps requesting pictures of BB, and how could I deny him that?”

Poe barks out a laugh, even as he puts an arm around Rey and pulls her close. “I love that you and my dad got along so well. Though I think he’s scamming us for double the BB pictures, since I get those same texts from him.”

Rey shrugs. “Well, who can blame him,” she says, grinning.

After that, they wander around some more, exchanging idle chit chat and just enjoying each other’s company. Poe even shares a few memories of the gardens from when he was a kid on vacation with his family, while Rey enjoys watching the emotions play out on his face, the fond and almost wistful look sharing space with the obvious joy of the memory.

A few beats after the conclusion of his story, Poe squeezes her hand and says, “We should do this every year.”

“We should,” she readily agrees. “We should do this every year. Even when you’re a congressman.”

Poe gives her a wry look. “When? You’re so certain that I could win?”

Rey stops walking, tugging at his hand until he stops and turns to face her. There’s a strange sense of nervousness that she gets from him, something in the look in his eyes and the set of his shoulders. She wonders where it came from. “I’m positive. The Senator is positive. Kes is positive. Once you get in front of the voters and make your case, they’ll be positive, too. You’re incredible, Poe. A natural leader, just like the Senator.”

Poe takes her other hand in his, so now he’s clasping both of hers in both of his. He squeezes gently. “What if I lose? What if it will all be for nothing?”

“It won’t be for nothing. You’ll have fought for something important, something you believe in. I believe in it, too, and I believe in you. No matter what happens, I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

Poe’s face gentles, a soft smile now playing at the corner of his lips. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Now, don’t think I’m gonna be some little lady standing docilely by during the campaign,” she says, teasingly.

Poe throws his head back and laughs. “Nah. You’re a badass politico fighting the good fight, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Yes, I am. And you’re a badass politico, too, fighting the good fight.”

Poe looks at her then, a strange look on his face, as if the nervousness has once again returned but now tempered with affection. “Both of us badass politicos, fighting the good fight. Both of us together, I think we could be unstoppable.”

She nods, unwilling to break the silence, not while Poe still searches her face for something. Suddenly, it’s as if he’s found whatever he’s searching for, and he nods once, definitively. One hand goes up to his neck, pulling a chain out from under his shirt and over his head until he’s clasping it in his hand. At the same time, he goes down to one knee, kneeling before her.

There’s a part of her that’s grateful towards Poe for waiting till they were safely hidden behind some dense green foliage, away from the prying eyes of the crowds wandering through the exhibit. She’s grateful, because he hasn’t even said anything yet, and she’s about to cry, so overwhelmed _but in a good way_ , and while she’s never been one to cry when she’s happy, now she’s just hoping her face doesn’t become all red and blotchy.

Poe, for his part, can never hide his emotions, and his warm brown eyes are advertising everything he’s feeling as he gazes up at her. He’s got a ring clasped between his fingers, and his voice is soft and sweet as he speaks, and then he finally asks the question -

“Rey, will you marry me?”

She hauls him up, already kissing his face and lips before she realizes she hadn’t actually answered him. She peppers yeses in between kisses then, laughing at him when he pulls back, dumbstruck, at her response.

“Yes? You’ll marry me?”

She laughs, overwhelmed and overjoyed, before saying “Yes” once more. He lifts her in his arms, spins her gently around, and it feels like flying.

She hopes that it’ll always feel like this.

\--

“Okay, we got the chips, dips, crackers, cheese, cookies, and brownies. Pizza is on its way, soda and beer and wine is in the kitchen along with the cake. What are we missing?”

Rey glances at the long table. “We don’t have nearly enough food,” she says, doing her best to keep her expression deadpan.

It works, and for half a moment, Poe looks panicked, until he catches on that she’s teasing him. He shakes his head at her, a wry grin on his face as he taps her nose with the tip of his finger.

It’s only a few short moments until the first of their guests arrives, and soon their apartment is filled with their close friends.

Finn and Rose sit close together on the couch, clearly inseparable. Paige sits on the coffee table talking to them, a plate of food sitting carefully in her lap.

Kaydel Connix is talking in the corner with Snap and Karé. For once, Kaydel is wearing her hair down, the blonde strands brushing her shoulders, and she’s dressed casually. During their time working together at Senator Organa’s office, Rey had grown to like Kaydel very much, and now considers her one of her close friends. There’s nothing like a public relations catastrophe to bring a group of people close together quickly, she thinks wryly.

Jess Pava wanders up to the little group a moment later. Rey doesn’t know Jess, Snap, or Karé nearly as well as she knows Kaydel, but she’s never seen anyone more loyal or devoted to Poe, or vice versa, and she likes them instinctively.

A few more people from Rey’s new and old job and from Poe’s organization fill out the room. When everyone has had a chance to eat and drink their fill, she watches as Poe goes to turn down the volume of the music playing on their stereo.

Rey suddenly feels all eyes on her and Poe, and she has to take a deep breath. She’s never enjoyed being the center of attention, although the excitement of their announcement – and Poe standing next to her – helps soothe the anxiety that has crept up.

They had called Kes earlier that afternoon to let him know, and Senator Organa after hanging up with him. Despite their differing reactions, Kes talking a mile a minute in excitement and the Senator’s pleased, knowing tone while offering congratulations, their responses had warmed Rey’s heart.

Now, she was about to let her friends in on the news.

“Sorry to take you all away from your food and your conversation. But Rey and I just wanted to thank you all for coming tonight. I know it’s a Saturday night and you all probably had big plans – Snap, I know it’s your usual night to binge watch Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” Poe says, laughing as Snap yells, _Yeah, you owe me_ back at Poe. “But then again, since most of us are working in government or non-profit jobs, I knew it would be pretty easy to drag you here with the promise of free food and drinks.”

A cheer rose up from the crowd, as people toasted Poe and Rey with their pizza slices or glasses of wine and beer.

“So why did you really bring us here tonight,” Snap asks. “You know how important my Brooklyn Nine-Nine re-watch is.” The last sentence ends on a huff of air, as Karé elbows him in the side. Snap pouts and looks at her, and she just grins and kisses him on the cheek.

“I’m so glad you asked,” Poe says, grinning. “Rey and I actually have an announcement.”

“Oh my god, you’re engaged-” Finn yells.

At the same time, Rose shouts, “You’re running for office!”

It’s almost comical how everyone’s eyes turn to look at Finn and Rose on one side of the room, and then automatically turn back to Rey and Poe on the other side. Rey’s sure her jaw is gaping open in surprise, knows for certain Poe’s jaw is too as she looks at him, his eyebrows practically in his hairline as he glances back at her in shock.

Poe clears his throat. “Alright, so we actually have two announcements,” he says, his words cut off as a loud cheer breaks out. “Rey for some inexplicable reason has decided to settle for me,” he says, winking at Rey as she shakes her head in mock exasperation with him. “And in a few weeks, I’ll be officially announcing my candidacy for Congress. I wanted all of you to be the first to know.”

Rey was pretty sure that Rose was fit to burst, running up to them immediately and hugging them in her excitement. Finn followed, as did the rest of their guests. The cake and champagne then made its appearance, as conversation turned to a bizarre mix of political and campaign and wedding advice.

It made a strange sort of sense, Rey thought. It was a tightknit group of multitasking politicos, smart, strong, and wonderful, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Rey had just grabbed a slice of cake when she sees Poe tap Finn on the shoulder. Poe gestures at her, and she sneaks away to join them in a room away from the crowd.

Finn and Poe had grown closer over the last year, with Finn working on Senator Organa’s field team and roping Poe into volunteering even more on the campaign than Poe had expected. There was a natural chemistry between the two. They had just fit with each other, right from the start.

So, when Poe decided he was going to run, it just made sense to him that Finn should be his campaign director.

And when Poe and Rey decided to get married, it just made sense to him that he should ask Finn to be his best man.

“Are you kidding me? There’s nothing that could get me to say no!”

Finn looks excited, eager, as does Poe, who laughs and hugs Finn.

Finn pulls back and grasps Poe’s shoulders in his hands. “We’re gonna do this.”

“We’re gonna do this,” Poe says, grinning.

“Now, if you would be so kind as to keep the news to yourself for just a little bit longer, just until I get a chance to talk to Rose about being my maid of honor.”

Finn’s jaw drops and he makes a little noise of excitement as he quickly moves to wrap Rey in a hug. “You’re asking Rose to be your maid of honor, and I’m gonna be best man, this is too perfect!”

Finn’s excitement is infectious, and she’s almost concerned that in his excitement he’ll spoil the surprise with Rose. But he’s probably the most trustworthy man she knows, along with Poe, so she sends him back to the party without any further worry.

She closes the door behind Finn and leans back to rest against it. She lets out a little sigh and closes her eyes for a moment to relax. She hears Poe’s soft footsteps come towards her, and a moment later, she’s wrapped up in his arms. She jumps a little as his nose presses into her neck. “Poe, your nose is freezing!”

Poe murmurs something indecipherable in reply.

For the first time that evening, it’s quiet. They’re in their own little bubble in the back room, the sounds of the party somewhere far off in the distance. They rock a little back and forth, aimlessly, wrapped up in each other’s arms.

The next several months will be some of the hardest, some of the busiest in her life. But she knows they will also be some of the most worthwhile. There’s something important worth fighting for, and she’ll fight for it happily and without fear because she’ll be fighting with her family by her side.


	11. Epilogue

“Please confirm the meeting with the governor and schedule my flight to California the day before that. We can probably fit in a few other meetings while I’m out there,” Rey says, listening for the reply. “Perfect. My phone will be off for the rest of the night, but I’ll be back in the office the day after tomorrow. Talk to you later,” Rey says before disconnecting from the call. She drops her phone into her clutch and passes the items off to the assistant with them.

Poe stands about fifteen feet from her, and she walks over to join him. She can’t help but tug the fabric of her dress away from her waist a bit, shimmying around as if it would make the formfitting clothing more comfortable, while wishing she could just toss off the pair of heels that were pinching her toes. Suddenly, a memory springs forth to her mind, and she smiles at the realization of how her life seems to have come full circle.

“What are you grinning about?” Poe asks as he moves a step closer to her, raising a hand to tuck a piece of hair that has escaped from her updo behind her ear.

She shakes her head a little, eyes mirthful as she glances over Poe’s face, her own hands coming up to adjust his collar. “Just remembering the first time we met.”

Once more they were dressed up, she in a formal gown, him in a dark suit. She’s still more than a little uncomfortable in the dress, the way the long skirt of it billows loose around her legs more than a little different from her typical work attire now, the simple trousers and blouse with a blazer she favors when she’s in the office or taking meetings on Capital Hill.

“I remember,” he says, a soft smile playing on his lips. “You were beautiful. Charmed everyone at that gala.”

“I think you’re misremembering things, clearly that was you who was charming everyone there,” she says, thinking back to how easily he worked the room, charming everyone from the wealthy and powerful people who helped fund the organization, to those he worked with and for. He was natural and authentic with everyone he talked to, and with his natural leadership skills, it was no wonder he had ended up here.

She glances down at where their hands are now linked together, her left hand in his right, and sees the glint of the ring adorning her finger.

She can’t believe this is her life sometimes. How she had started her life off, abandoned and left behind, to her childhood in rags, only to claw herself out and end up at a university which led to her working for Senator Organa on Capitol Hill. Then, somehow, inexplicably, she ended up here, her toes being pinched once more in fancy shoes, her phone now blissfully on silent as she steps away from her work at a job she absolutely adores for the night, to stand beside the love of her life at the victory celebration.

She can hear the noise of the crowd, their jubilation filling the air, as the speaker’s remarks flow out of the PA system. She’s never heard a crowd this excited before, not even at any of the parties and rallies she had attended when she was working for Senator Organa.

It’s very overwhelming. But if there’s anything she’s learned in the last few years, it is how desperate people were for a little hope when everything around seemed dark and bleak. Poe, she knew, possessed the hope and the fire to light its spark in spades, so the devotion he inspired in not just his team but also the voters was unsurprising.

She never expected she would be here. Never expected that she would have the kind of fruitful, meaningful career that could have her changing lives for the better. Never thought that she would go to rallies or speak on stage and have people _cheer for her_ and what she’s done. She prefers to avoid the limelight, more adept at making policy changes behind the scenes, working one on one or in small groups of people to carry out change. She’ll let Poe, who like Senator Organa could motivate and lead the masses, run for office and deal with the politics of it all.

Once she got used to being in the public eye – or at least somewhat used to it – she appreciated the enthusiasm of the crowd. But still, the noise almost overwhelms her then, the cheering getting even louder as the speaker begins concluding his remarks, and they prepared to walk on stage.

Poe lets out a huff of breath, his hand tightening around hers.

“Nervous?” She asks, glancing over at him and seeing the barely concealed energy thrumming away just beneath his skin. No matter how many speeches he seems to give, a wave of nervous energy always seems to descend over him until the very last moment before he’s called to stage, and then suddenly it’s as if a switch is flipped and he’s as confident and unflappable as ever.

He gives her a wry grin. “Is it that apparent?”

She smiles back, shrugging her shoulders. “Only to me. You’ll do great.”

He leans in and kisses her cheek quickly, and she wants to pout, wants to be petulant about it, but knows that the cameras would pick up even the slightest hint of a lipstick smear.

The aide standing next to them taps Poe on the shoulder, and they face forward together as the speaker finishes his remarks and announces Poe’s name. The crowd erupts in cheers, and she squeezes Poe’s hand once more as he looks at her, a brilliant smile overcoming his face. With a nod, he walks out onto the stage, waving at the crowd.

\--

As the evening wears on, Rey’s lost count of how many hands she’s shaken and how many business cards she’s taken. Rey learned many lessons from Senator Organa, but one of the most important was how the work never stops, not really, not when there’s people out there so willing to do harm to others just to benefit themselves. Even in the midst of celebration, the work continues.

With a final promise to be in touch, she slips another business card into her clutch, and breathes a sigh of relief. For the first time that evening, she seems to be alone, no one walking up to her asking for a quick word. She glances around once more, then looks behind her, where a long buffet table sits. There’s a crowd around it, but maybe if she keeps her head down and focused on the food, no one will interrupt her.

That’s her hope, at least. She hasn’t eaten for almost eight hours, and she’s pretty sure her stomach will soon start eating itself if she doesn’t feed it.

She takes two steps towards the long table but is cut off from continuing by a few supporters. She tries to hide her disappointment at being denied access to the buffet once more (especially since she’s pretty sure she spied crab puffs being brought out just a moment ago). The man and woman are enthusiastic though, and while it’s easy enough to reflect that same excitement, the longer the two talk, the hungrier she becomes.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spies Finn headed towards them. He’s as much of a charmer as Poe is, has been working the room all night with his typical cheer and good humor. With how busy they have all been in recent weeks, she’s pleased to see him, particularly if he could help her escape this conversation which seems to have no end in sight.

Before she can even blink an eye, he’s apologized to the two others, and steals her away.

He smiles at her, even as he gestures towards the other side of the room. “Sorry, Peanut, it’s not a social call. Your phone is off, and Poe wants to know if you can meet him in the back.”

She casts a longing look over her shoulder at the long buffet table, giving Finn the side eye when he laughs at her.

“I know, and believe me, it’s a good set up,” he says, nodding towards the table, and she’s a little jealous at the obvious implication that he’s already had a chance to eat. “But don’t worry, you’ll get fed soon. Now go,” he laughs.

It’s easy enough to dodge the crowd when you look like you’re on a mission, so she sets her face in its most determined look and heads towards the back room where they had gotten ready earlier. The door is closed, and she knocks softly before easing it open.

Poe grins at her as she walks in. He’s sitting at the little desk, two plates loaded with food sitting in front of him, and he looks more than a bit proud of his haul.

“I figured you might be hungry,” he says, pushing a chair towards her.

“Starving,” she replies, quickly moving to sit down, grateful to get off her feet for even a few minutes. Her eyes widen as she sees the plate. “Are those crab puffs?”

“You know it,” he says, laughing. “I had them put a few plates together for us since we wouldn’t really have the chance to make it to the buffet table. And I figured we’d both need the energy before the dancing.”

She groans at the thought of the entire crowd watching while she and Poe take a turn on the dance floor by themselves. He just grins, and slides one of the crab puffs from his plate on to hers. She raises her eyebrow at him, and a second later, a strawberry cheesecake bite ends up on her plate, too.

Finally, she grins, biting into one of the crab puffs even as Poe smiles at her, amused.

“Told you that I know the best place to scope out at parties,” she says.

“Is that so?”

“When I first told you that, that time when we had just met, I was just joking. But now, look. Pretty much have a plate of all the best foods brought straight to me.”

Poe huffs out a laugh. “You do have a point. It must be a natural talent of yours.”

They turn to their attention to the food, their conversation growing quiet as they eat quickly. They both know they’ll need to be out on the dance floor in a matter of minutes, one more celebration of Poe’s election before their official duties are done. She can’t help teasing him a bit more as they eat, stealing another crab puff off his plate only to replace it with one of her petit fours, grinning at him as he taps her under the chin for a quick kiss.

An aide knocks on the door to let them know it’s about time, and she takes a moment to check her teeth and freshen her lipstick (and she still can’t quite believe she’s become one to wear lipstick, but Rose insisted on it for the cameras). She looks up from the mirror, only to see Poe leaning against the desk, a soft, indecipherable look on his face.

“What are you thinking about?” She can’t help but be the one asking this time.

“You,” he says, holding out his hand to her for her to take. “I don’t know how I got so lucky, but I couldn’t imagine my life without you. 

She takes his hand, and together they make their way down the darkened hallway towards the bright light of the ballroom. They stand at its entrance, waiting for the speaker to announce them once more and the music to begin.

She glances over at Poe in the moments before, and he grins, raising her hand to press a kiss to the back of it.

“Rey, may I have this dance?”

She remembers the first time he asked her to dance, her uncertainty and excitement and the thousand other emotions she couldn’t name.

She’s grateful every day that she said yes.

So, when he asks her to dance, it’s an easy answer. She doesn’t even have to think about it.

“Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a wrap! I just wanted to thank everyone who has stuck with me till the end, who has left kudos or commented on this fic. The support and feedback has really been wonderful, and it was a great motivator to keep working on this and the other stories I've posted as well. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the conclusion, and thank you for reading!


End file.
